Biochemistry Final Project part 1 - Essay Example

Schizophrenia Schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that affects almost of the human population in the world (Cohen, Kleinman, & Saraceno, 2002). The patient feels, perceives and thinks differently, and this completely affects how schizophrenics relate to the environment and other people close to them. During the active phase of the condition, the patient, who were otherwise healthy, presents with psychotic symptoms. Some of these include auditory hallucinations, disturbance in the way of thinking, social withdrawal, unusual behavior/speech and delusions.

Schizophrenia has been linked to the affected parents passing the genes to the children (genetic factors), unusual metabolic conditions and abnormal brain conditions (Cohen, Kleinman, & Saraceno, 2002).It is evident from research that kids with both parents free from schizophrenia have 1% risk of developing the illness. If either of the parents has schizophrenia, then the child`s risk of developing the disease rises to approximately 13%. If all parents have the illness, then there is a 46% chance of the child having the illness later in life.

There is an 8% risk in cases where, all other relatives are free from the disease, but a brother or a sister to an individual has schizophrenia. An identical twin of an individual with schizophrenia is 48% at risk as compared to only 17% risk in case of dizygotic twins (Pfaff, 2013). First-degree relatives of an individual with schizophrenia are at a greater risk than second-degree relatives. In addition to genetic factors, other environmental factors such as general stress play a role in developing schizophrenia.

Brain examination through neuroimaging has shown brain abnormalities in schizophrenics (Harman, 2003). The ventricles are enlarged, and there are fluid-filled cavities in the deeper parts of the brain. These abnormalities are the cause of the accompanying symptoms. Besides, an imbalance in neurotransmitters, dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate may cause schizophrenia. Homocysteine accumulation due to deficiency of methionine synthase and cystathionine β-synthase causes schizophrenia. Other conditions such as hypocalcemia and hyperparathyroidism are linked to schizophrenia.

Structural changes, copy number variations (CNV) in individual’s genome causes schizophrenia. CNV happens if the genetic material is lost, duplicated wrongly or inserted in a wrong manner. For instance deletion at 22q11 accounts for psychosis in 30% of cases. When 22q11 deletion occurs, essential genes that play a crucial role in schizophrenia such as that coding for proline dehydrogenase are lost.The American Psychiatric Association (APA) developed Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

It outlines the diagnostic steps to be used in diagnosing schizophrenia. The differential diagnosis involves taking a thorough medical history besides physical examination. It is important to rule out any other mental problem during diagnosis. Brain scan through neuroimaging is done to determine the particular brain region involved. The doctor should also request for a total blood count and levels of glucose, electrolytes, folic acid and vitamin B-12. Treatment of schizophrenia is symptom oriented.

Use of drugs that regulate neurotransmitter activity, antipsychotics, and antiepileptic drugs are common (Pfaff, 2013). Vitamin therapy is also included in the regimen since vitamins normalize disordered brain metabolism. If schizophrenia is not managed, the patients are at risk of harming themselves and are at a higher risk of dying earlier.Schizophrenia is my topic of choice since it has a genetic predisposition and involves a lot of biochemical changes. Besides, a distant relative and one of my friends have the condition, and I want to understand what they go through.

I did a thorough literature review to gather this knowledge.ReferencesCohen, A., Kleinman, A., & Saraceno, B. (2002). World mental health casebook social and mental health programs in low-income countries. New York: Kluwer Academic. Harman, C. E. (2003). The diagnosis and stigma of schizophrenia. Brookings, Or.: Old Court Press.Pfaff, D. W. (2013). Neuroscience in the 21st century from basic to clinical. New York, NY: Springer New York : Imprint: Springer. .