An Oncogene Variant in Schizophrenia

Patients with schizophrenia have high rates of heavy smoking and, paradoxically, an almost 50% lower risk for respiratory cancers. Some scientists have postulated genetic mechanisms for this low risk, partly because unaffected relatives have similarly low cancer rates. One cancer gene, the MET proto-oncogene (MET) is known to increase metastases and to influence development. In animals, decreased MET expression is associated with fewer cortical interneurons and a smaller cerebellar vermis, which are also seen in patients with schizophrenia. MET alleles have also been associated with autism, another developmental disorder. In a postmortem study, MET mRNA expression was low in brains of autistic individuals.

To examine the role of MET in schiz…