Schizophrenia: A gene at 6p?

Approximately one in every 100 individuals will develop schizophrenia during the course of his or her life. The symptoms typically emerge in the late teens and twenties: schizophrenia disrupts an individual’s thought processes, perceptions, emotions and behaviour. Sufferers lose touch with reality, developing false beliefs (delusions) and experiencing abnormal perceptions — in particular, auditory hallucinations or ‘voices’. They may also show poverty in the amount and content of speech, poor working memory, and inappropriate mood and behaviour. The frequent hospitalizations, profound psychosocial impairment, and high incidence of suicide ensure that schizophrenia is a major public health concern.