In other animal research, scientists have linked disorders of working memory to specific areas of the prefrontal lobe. Positron emission tomography brain scans show that some of these brain areas function abnormally in schizophrenic patients during memory tasks. Eventually, MRI may help diagnose schizophrenia in humans. Studies of brain wiring in the monkey reveal that the prefrontal cortex also regulates information transmission from lower to higher processing centers. Since the prefrontal cortex has one of the highest concentrations of nerve fibers with the neurotransmitter dopamine, these reports provide important clues for the development of new drugs.
Neurotransmitters are chemicals which transmit messages from neuron to neuron.
They act by binding to molecules called receptors. Examination of schizophrenic brains show abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex and other brain regions. These abnormalities may interfere with normal brain function. Some researchers think that, in people with certain genetic abnormalities, damage from a virus or other factor during development or birth may destroy brain wiring. They recently developed an animal model in which early injury to part of the brain produces abnormal behavior that compares to symptoms of schizophrenia.