TY - JOUR
T1 - Intracerebral Inoculation of Experimental Animals With Brain Tissue From Patients With Schizophrenia
T2 - Failure to Observe Consistent or Specific Behavioral and Neuropathological Effects
AU - Kaufmann, Charles A.
AU - Weinberger, Daniel R.
AU - Stevens, Janice R.
AU - Asher, David M.
AU - Kleinman, Joel E.
AU - Sulima, Michael P.
AU - Gibbs, Clarence J.
AU - Gajdusek, D. Carleton
PY - 1988/7
Y1 - 1988/7
N2 - To test the possibility that some cases of schizophrenia result from infection with a transmissible slow viral agent, 57 experimental animals (six chimpanzees, 12 Old World monkeys, 17 New World monkeys, and 22 guinea pigs) were inoculated intracerebrally with brain tissue from ten patients and followed up for six years. Behavioral comparisons with control animals revealed no consistent behavioral differences. Histological, immunohistochemical, and morphometric examination of brains of animals that died revealed no specific neuropathological abnormalities. These findings do not support a role for a virus-induced slow infection in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia but must be weighed against methodological limitations in animal susceptibility, disease communicability, and assay sensitivity.
AB - To test the possibility that some cases of schizophrenia result from infection with a transmissible slow viral agent, 57 experimental animals (six chimpanzees, 12 Old World monkeys, 17 New World monkeys, and 22 guinea pigs) were inoculated intracerebrally with brain tissue from ten patients and followed up for six years. Behavioral comparisons with control animals revealed no consistent behavioral differences. Histological, immunohistochemical, and morphometric examination of brains of animals that died revealed no specific neuropathological abnormalities. These findings do not support a role for a virus-induced slow infection in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia but must be weighed against methodological limitations in animal susceptibility, disease communicability, and assay sensitivity.
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U2 - 10.1001/archpsyc.1988.01800310056007
DO - 10.1001/archpsyc.1988.01800310056007
M3 - Article
C2 - 3132907
AN - SCOPUS:0023919874
VL - 45
SP - 648
EP - 652
JO - JAMA Psychiatry
JF - JAMA Psychiatry
SN - 2168-622X
IS - 7
ER -