Date:
19.03.2021 - 14:00
On 19 March at 14:00 Liisa Leppik will defend her doctoral thesis “Alterations in metabolomic profile of lipids, amino acids and biogenic amines in the early course of schizophrenia spectrum disorders”.
Supervisors:
Associate Professor Liina Haring, University of Tartu
Professor Eero Vasar, University of Tartu
Professor Mihkel Zilmer, University of Tartu
Opponent:
Professor Laura Korhonen, Linköping University (Sweden)
Summary
Schizophrenia spectrum disorders are characterised by abnormal perceptions and interpretations that are not in correlation with reality. Understanding pathogenesis of these disorders is important for development of their diagnosis and treatment.
The aim of the study was to characterise glycerophospholipid, sphingolipid, amino acid and biogenic amine profile in psychotic disorder patients in different stages of the illness.
53 first-episode psychosis patients were monitored longitudinally during 5 years of the study. Demographic and clinical data and blood samples were collected during three time points – at the onset of the disease, 7 months after initiating antipsychotic treatment and 5 years after ongoing treatment and illness. Control group consisted of 37 healthy volunteers.
The results demonstrated following metabolic shifts at the onset of the first psychotic episode when comparing patients to control group: lower proline, alpha-aminoadipic acid, 16 phosphatidylcholine and one sphingolipid levels and tyrosine/phenylalanine ratio; levels of taurine, one lysophosphatidylcholine and ratio of ornithine/arginine were heightened.
Seven months of antipsychotic treatment resulted in improvement in patients’ psychotic symptoms and reversion of formerly described metabolomic changes.
Five years after ongoing treatment and illness patients demonstrated elevated asparagine, glutamine, ornithine, taurine and methionine levels and ornithine/arginine ratio. Contrary, aspartate, glutamate, alpha-aminoadipic acid levels and aspartate/asparagine, glutamate/glutamine, alpha-aminoadipic acid/kynurenine ratios were reduced.
Found deviations are associated to disruption of neurotransmitters’ function, inflammatory and energetic processes. The study proved dynamic changes in amino acid, biogenic amine and specific lipid metabolite profile in schizophrenia spectrum disorder patients during the course of illness and long-term treatment.
The defence will be held in Microsoft Teams.
Location:
Via video bridge
URL:
https://dspace.ut.ee/handle/10062/71400
Event category: