FoxP2 and Schizophrenia: a systematic review

Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a neurodevelopmental psychiatric disorder characterized by impaired information processing and neural circuit dysfunction. FoxP2, an ontological transcription factor, is crucial for brain development and neuronal differentiation. This systematic review explores the association between FoxP2 polymorphisms and SCZ using PRISMA guidelines to search PubMed and EMBASE. Articles were selected based on predefined criteria, and their findings were systematically evaluated. While no FoxP2 polymorphism was significantly associated with SCZ risk, specific variants showed relevance to clinical manifestations. Rs10447760 is linked to symptom severity and Body Mass Index (BMI), rs1456031 correlated with childhood parental abuse and auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH), rs2253478 is associated with poverty of speech, and rs2396753 is significantly related to reduced grey matter density (GMD) in SCZ patients. These findings suggest that FoxP2 polymorphisms may influence SCZ-related traits such as weight gain, language impairments, reduced GMD, and trauma-associated AVH. However, the limited sample sizes and scope of current studies highlight the need for further research to clarify FoxP2's role in less explored aspects of SCZ.