BackgroundThough the dysfunction of central dopaminergic system has been proposed, the etiology or pathogenesis of schizophrenia is still uncertain partly due to limited accessibility to dopamine receptor. The purpose of this study was to define whether or not the easily accessible dopamine receptors of peripheral lymphocytes can be the peripheral markers of schizophrenia.Results44 drug-medicated schizophrenics for more than 3 years, 28 drug-free schizophrenics for more than 3 months, 15 drug-naïve schizophrenic patients, and 31 healthy persons were enrolled. Sequential reverse transcription and quantitative polymerase chain reaction of the mRNA were used to investigate the expression of D3 and D5 dopamine receptors in peripheral lymphocytes. The gene expression of dopamine receptors was compared in each group. After taking antipsychotics in drug-free and drug-naïve patients, the dopamine receptors of peripheral lymphocytes were sequentially studied 2nd week and 8th week after medication.In drug-free schizophrenics, D3 dopamine receptor mRNA expression of peripheral lymphocytes significantly increased compared to that of controls and drug-medicated schizophrenics, and D5 dopamine receptor mRNA expression increased compared to that of drug-medicated schizophrenics. After taking antipsychotics, mRNA of dopamine receptors peaked at 2nd week, after which it decreases but the level was above baseline one at 8th week. Drug-free and drug-naïve patients were divided into two groups according to dopamine receptor expression before medications, and the group of patients with increased dopamine receptor expression had more severe psychiatric symptoms.ConclusionsThese results reveal that the molecular biologically-determined dopamine receptors of peripheral lymphocytes are reactive, and that increased expression of dopamine receptor in peripheral lymphocyte has possible clinical significance for subgrouping of schizophrenis.

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Objective: Although nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) in youth is an important mental health concern worldwide, limited studies have investigated its sociodemographic correlates in early adulthood. This study explored associations between socioeconomic status (SES) and self-harm behaviors, including NSSI and suicidal ideation, in a community-based sample of young adults. Methods: A total of 414 Korean young adults engaged in NSSI and 200 controls completed online self-report questionnaires assessing sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, using logistic regression to estimate the odds ratio and analyzed risk factors for NSSI, especially the independent influence of SES on NSSI risk. Multivariate regression was performed to identify the role of socioeconomic disadvantage in suicidal ideation in NSSI people. Results: Logistic regression showed that low SES significantly increased NSSI risk. Multivariable regression also revealed that lower SES was related to more severe suicidal ideation in young adults with NSSI after controlling for gender and the higher-severity NSSI index, including the number of NSSI methods used and NSSI intrapersonal functions. Conclusions: This is the first study to directly address socioeconomic gradients of a general population of young adults with NSSI and its effects, and socioeconomic status should be considered preemptively when defining suicide risks of this group and when intervening in self-injurious behaviors.

In order to investigate the risk factors of ischemic brain stroke (IBS) in diabetic patients, we analyzed 416 cases selected from 6239 diabetic patients admitted to Severance Hospital from Jan. 1983 to Dec 1987. Two hundred and eight cases had IBS. The other 208 cases without IBS were selected as a control group by a stratified random sampling method. The two groups were compared using various clinical characteristics of diabetes mellitus (DM) and known risk factors of IBS. In diabetics with IBS, the duration of DM was longer (9.2 +/- 7.1 years), hypertension was more frequently associated (68.2%) and the serum cholesterol level was higher (213.0 +/- 55.2 mg/dl) than in diabetics without IBS (7.6 +/- 7.1 years, 32.1% and 192.1 +/- 44.8 mg/dl, respectively). By means of Stepwise Logistic Regression Analysis (SLRA), it was found that the strong risk factors were hypertension and serum cholesterol level. The serum triglyceride level, type of DM and response to diabetes treatment were also thought to be risk factors of IBS by the retrial of SLRA of residuals after exclusion of hypertension and serum cholesterol level. IBS was not significantly related to the duration of DM, fasting blood glucose level, body weight, glycosylated hemoglobin value, and serum high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol level.

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