The Role of Oxidative Stress in the Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia

Abstract

Research evidence increasingly suggests the presence of oxidative damage in schizophrenia. Numerous clinical and experimental studies have been conducted to investigate the involvement of oxidative stress in the pathophysiology of above mentioned disease. In this paper, after a brief introduction on the parameters of oxidative stress and the clinical picture of schizophrenia, an overview of the most important research data on changes of the antioxidant system activity in schizophrenia is given. The role of cytokines in inflammatory mediators that affect the appearance of schizophrenia as well as the key issue of the effect of antipsychotic drugs on oxidative stress markers is discussed. However, further research is needed to establish the exact role of oxidative stress in psychosis.