Mini-Review: Morphology of Pyramidal Neurons in Schizophrenia

Recommended Reading

Mini-Review: Dendritic Spine Density

Background Information for Mini-Reviews

---

In the previous mini-review we explored the differences in dendritic spine density of pyramidal neurons in the brains of people with schizophrenia compared to those without schizophrenia. Due to the severity of this dendritic spine deficiency it seemed unlikely that these pyramidal neurons were otherwise unaffected. Having explored this area of research further, it has become clear that not only do the pyramidal neurons of people with schizophrenia present with fewer spines than those without the illness, but these neurons also show deficiencies in soma size, dendrite length, and dendritic branching.

Background Information for Mini-Reviews on Schizophrenia Cell Morphology

In the next few weeks I’ll be posting some mini-reviews of research about neuronal differences in the brains of people with schizophrenia. Specifically, I’ll be writing about pyramidal neurons and how changes in their shape might affect specific functions in the brain. Before I do that I thought it might be helpful to have a little guide post to provide some background for the areas we’ll be covering. I’m likely to update this post as the reviews go on, and I’ll be sure to provide a link to it at the beginning of each review, but for now it should work as very brief background information which should make the reviews easier to read.