Immune system link to schizophrenia found

LOS ANGELES, July 6 (UPI) -- U.S and European researchers suggest the immune system and schizophrenia may be linked at the cellular level.

The study, published in the journal Nature, found three common genetic variants they suggest may predispose certain people to schizophrenia, as well as a link between the disease and pathways having to do with impaired cognitive and memory functions.

"This is another step forward in understanding the biological basis of this disorder, one that robs people of their lives," co-lead author Roel Ophoff of the University of Utrecht, The Netherlands, and the University of California, Los Angeles, said in a statement. "It also shows the importance of worldwide collaborations for the study of schizophrenia genetics, because it allows us to do very large numbers of scans."

Some 40 researchers did a genome-wide scan of 2,663 people diagnosed with schizophrenia and 13,498 controls from eight European locations, the study said.