A selenium transport protein model of a sub-type of schizophrenia

The model presented here suggests that a defect in a selenium transport protein may be a necessary but not sufficient precondition for a sub-type of schizophrenia--a type of schizophrenia that has been characterized by negative symptoms, brain damage, and a lack of primarily paranoid ideation. A defective selenium transport protein and consequent low levels of selenium might adversely affect multiple enzyme systems. Selenium-enzyme interreactions are discussed and the effect of selenium on arachidonic acid and its metabolites, especially 12-HPETE, are examined in light of the presented model. If the proffered model is essentially correct, selenoprotein P, a hypothesized selenium transport protein, is a likely candidate for a protein involved in the etiology of a form of schizophrenia.