Animal models of schizophrenia

Development of animal models for schizophrenia.

Schizophrenia is a devastating psychiatric disorder that affects around 1% of the population worldwide. The disease is characterized by 'positive symptoms', 'negative symptoms' and cognitive deficits. Over the last 60 years, a large number of family, twin and adoption studies have clearly demonstrated a strong genetic component for schizophrenia, but the mode of inheritance of the disease is co...

Animal Models of Schizophrenia: An Update

1 Schizophrenia is one of the most intriguing human diseases because it affects the most complex functions emanating from the brain. Bleuler defined the term in 1911 as a psychotic disorder characterized by four primary symptoms: “abnormal associations, autistic behavior and thinking, abnormal affect, and ambivalence” [1]. Developing an animal model that is expected to mimic deficits in such fu...

Importance of animal models in schizophrenia research.

OBJECTIVE This review aims to summarize the importance of animal models for research on psychiatric illnesses, particularly schizophrenia. METHOD AND RESULTS Several aspects of animal models are addressed, including animal experimentation ethics and theoretical considerations of different aspects of validity of animal models. A more specific discussion is included on two of the most widely us...

Pathophysiology and animal models of schizophrenia.

Animal models of schizophrenia are important for research aimed at developing improved pharmacotherapies. In particular, the cognitive deficits of schizophrenia remain largely refractory to current medications and there is a need for improved medications. We discuss the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and in particular the possible mechanisms underlying the cognitive deficits. We review the cu...

Palatability and animal models of schizophrenia