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Scent of a disorder: olfactory functioning in schizophrenia
Paul J Moberg1, Bruce I Turetsky
1Department of Psychiatry, Brain Behavior Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 10th Floor Gates Building, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. moberg@bbl.med.upenn.edu
Current Psychiatry Reports
|July 15, 2003
Summary
Schizophrenia patients show significant olfactory deficits, including impaired odor identification and memory. These chemosensory abnormalities suggest a genetic predisposition and primary olfactory system dysfunction.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Sensory Systems Biology
Background:
- Olfactory probes are increasingly used to study frontal and temporal-limbic system function in schizophrenia.
- Deficits in odor identification, detection, discrimination, and memory are reported in schizophrenia patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of olfactory system dysfunction in schizophrenia.
- To explore the potential genetic basis of chemosensory abnormalities in schizophrenia.
Main Methods:
- Assessment of olfactory functioning using olfactory probes.
- Analysis of olfactory processing in patients, family members, and at-risk individuals.
Main Results:
- Schizophrenia patients exhibit deficits in multiple aspects of olfactory processing.
- These impairments are independent of gender, medication, cognitive status, or smoking.
- Olfactory abnormalities are present in unaffected relatives, suggesting a genetic link.
Conclusions:
- Olfactory deficits in schizophrenia point to primary dysfunction of the olfactory system.
- These findings support a genetic vulnerability to chemosensory abnormalities in schizophrenia.
- The continuously regenerating olfactory system offers insights into neurodevelopmental processes in schizophrenia.