Maternal vitamin D deficiency disrupts the release of dopamine, which could explain the onset of schizophrenia.
- The exact causes of schizophrenia are unknown, but it is linked to the brain’s misuse of dopamine.
- According to a new study, this phenomenon could be the consequence of vitamin D deficiencies in the mother.
- Indeed, vitamin D is involved in the growth of neurons responsible for the production of dopamine.
24 million people worldwide suffer from schizophrenia, according to theWorld Health Organization. Discovered at the beginning of the 20th century, psychiatric illness remains poorly understood by scientists. But research is progressing. In the specialist journal cellsscientists from the University of Queensland, Australia, demonstrate how a vitamin D deficiency can promote the development of the pathology.
Vitamin D: a role in the onset of schizophrenia
The lead author of this study, Professor Darryl Eyles, has been working on the subject for a long time. Her previous research has linked maternal vitamin D deficiency to brain developmental disorders, including schizophrenia. The latter is notably caused by a change in the way the brain uses dopamine, a neurotransmitter often called “reward molecule” of the brain.
Schizophrenia: what is the link between dopamine and vitamin D?
With his team, the researcher has produced different cultures of neurons, called dopaminergic, they are the ones that produce dopamine. Some of these cultures were carried out in the presence of vitamin D. This experiment enabled the scientists to mimic a process similar to that which occurs during embryonic development: the neurons gradually differentiate and some become dopaminergic neurons. “We found that the altered differentiation process in the presence of vitamin D not only causes cells to grow differently, but also uses tools to release dopamine differently.“says Professor Eyles. The team was then able to analyze functional changes in dopamine uptake and release in the presence and absence of vitamin D. The researchers show that dopamine release was enhanced in cells cultured in the presence of the hormone compared to the control group.”This is conclusive evidence that vitamin D affects the structural differentiation of dopaminergic neurons.”concludes the Australian scientist.
Schizophrenia: multiple risk factors?
For the authors, this means that vitamin D deficiencies in the mother could modify the formation of dopamine circuits in the brain and thus promote the onset of schizophrenia. The team is currently continuing its work to understand whether other factors can have an impact on dopaminergic neurons, such as maternal infections.
