Schizophrenia is a very complex and debilitating brain disorder. All current studies that rely on drugs that can only mimic the manifestations of schizophrenia. But researchers from Johns Hopkins took advantage of the recent discovery of a major risk factor for this disease: the DISC1 gene which helped them develop a new mouse based on a genetic change relevant to the disease which would assist in understanding disease progression and developing new therapies. The researchers generated mice that make an incomplete, shortened form of the DISC1 protein which showed behaviors similar to hyperactivity, smell defects and apathy observed in schizophrenia patients.

The researchers are hopeful that this mouse model will help them fill many gaps in schizophrenia research, and maybe helpful to explore how external factors like stress or viruses may worsen symptoms.
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