POSTER
THE USE OF FLOW
CYTOMETRIC BASED MULTIPLEX ASSAYS IN THE ANALYSIS OF CYTOKINES AND GROWTH
FACTORS FROM CSF AND SERUM IN SCHIZOPHRENIA
Rachel M.
Craddock1, Jeffrey Huang1, S. John Curnow2,
Sabine Bahn1
1Department of
Neurobiology, Babraham Institute, Cambridge CB2 4AT, UK; 2Department
of Rheumatology, University of Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
The
current diagnosis of schizophrenia is complex, relying largely on clinical
examination, patient history, current symptoms, family history and the presence
or absence of other disorders. This process can take months and prolonged
diagnosis results in a hiatus before appropriate treatment, with consequences
for patient well being and quality of life and may also affect medium to
long-term disease outcome. The development of a diagnostic tool to aid in the
diagnosis of schizophrenia is therefore urgently required.
Luminex
technology allows the simultaneous measurement of up to 100 analytes such as
growth factors and cytokines, in a single tube or well of a microtitre plate
requiring only small sample volumes. This technology is currently being
employed in the present study to analyse the levels of cytokines and growth
factors in serum and CSF of schizophrenia patients compared to age and sex
matched controls with the aim of determining cytokine profiles in schizophrenia
that could provide a specific and non-invasive aid to diagnosis. Analysis of
cytokines and growth factors in schizophrenia will also aid the understanding of
pathological mechanisms underlying this disease.
This work was supported
through a centre grant by the Stanley Medical Research Institute