NEUROVIROLOGY AND NEUROIMMUNOLOGY OF SCHIZOPHRENIA

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This neurovirology and neuroimmunology project is focused on obtaining evidence that the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and other neuropsychiatric illnesses may be an infectious process, involving either a viral agent and/or an autoimmune reaction involving central nervous system tissue autoantibodies. The techniques used involve the quantification of specific proteins, including immunoglobulins, in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), stimulation of cultured lymphocytes in order to identify latent retroviral infection, the use of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in an effort to identify small quantities of viral genomic DNA in postmortem brain tissue, and the assessment of lymphocyte subpopulations.