Genetic animal models for schizophrenia: Advantages and limitations of genetic manipulation in drosophila, zebrafish, rodents, and primates

Schizophrenia is a debilitating mental illness in which major initial risks of the disease during neurodevelopment may disturb postnatal brain maturation, which results in onset after puberty. Family, twin, and adoption studies have suggested an important role for genetic factors in the etiology of schizophrenia. To address the etiology-associated mechanisms and disease course, use of genetic models, that is, manipulation of genetic susceptibility factors, is currently considered to be a powerful tool for biological studies. In this manuscript, advantages and possible limitations in manipulating genetic susceptibility factors for schizophrenia toward modeling the disease are discussed. In addition to mouse models, the potential to use drosophila, zebrafish, and primates is underscored.