Science / Medicine : Treatment of Schizophrenia

Scientists have discovered a target in the brain for a recently introduced anti-schizophrenia drug, a finding that may lead to development of better drugs for the disease. The target is a previously unknown protein on brain cells, and researchers found that the drug clozapine binds to it in the test tube.

The new research is presented in the British journal Nature by scientists at the University of Toronto, the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry in Toronto and the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland.

The researchers said they cloned the gene for the protein and studied the protein’s behavior in laboratory tests.

The protein, called D4, belongs to the brain’s family of dopamine receptors. The receptors receive bursts of a chemical called dopamine from neighboring brain cells as a key step in cell-to-cell communication.

Scientists said the newfound protein may help researchers find new anti-schizophrenia drugs that retain clozapine’s advantages while avoiding its side effects.