Cited by 568Schizophrenia research and treatmentNeuroscience and Neuropharmacology ResearchNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior

The Glutamatergic Dysfunction Hypothesis for Schizophrenia

Coyle, Joseph T.·1996·Harvard Review of Psychiatry

Abstract

Schizophrenia is a syndrome, undoubtedly with multiple etiologies, that variably exhibits several features including positive and negative symptoms, cognitive deficits, onset in young adulthood, and deterioration from the previous level of function. This review will examine the growing evidence that dysfunction of corticolimbic glutamatergic neurotransmission may contribute to or account for the manifestations of schizophrenia. Glutamatergic neurons represent the primary excitatory afferent and efferent systems innervating the cortex, limbic regions, and striatum. The postsynaptic actions of glutamate are mediated by a family of glutamate-gated ion channels that permit the influx of sodium and calcium, thereby depolarizing (exciting) neurons. One of these receptors, the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, is the site of action of psychotomimetics such as phencyclidine and related anesthetics, which can reproduce in normal individuals most of the symptomatic features of schizophrenia. An endogenous antagonist at the NMDA receptor, N-acetyl-aspartyl glutamate, appears to have enhanced activity in the frontal cortex and hippocampal formation in persons with this disorder. Glutamatergic dysfunction may be particularly relevant to those forms of schizophrenia in which negative symptoms, cognitive deficits, and deterioration are prominent features. In support of this inference, clinical studies have shown that drugs that enhance NMDA-receptor function reduce negative symptoms and cognitive deficits in persons with chronic schizophrenia who are receiving neuroleptics. Thus, dysfunction of glutamatergic neurotransmission represents an important organizational focus for research on the complex manifestations of schizophrenia.

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Crossref · 10.3109/10673229609017192

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Authors
Coyle, J. T.
Affiliations
Harvard University (US)
Corresponding author
Coyle, Joseph T.
Venue
Harvard Review of Psychiatry
Published
1996-01
Volume
3
Issue
5
Pages
241-253
ISSN
1067-3229 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2069656785
Cited by
568
References
147
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 20 · 2015: 25 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 25
FWCI
14.51
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Harvard Review of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
Keywords
schizophrenia, glutamatergic dysfunction, NMDA receptor, N-acetylaspartylglutamate, negative symptoms, cognitive impairment, phencyclidine, antipsychotic drugs, frontal cortex, hippocampus, striatum
MeSH terms
Cerebral Cortex, Humans, Nerve Degeneration, Schizophrenia, Signal Transduction, Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate, Glutamic Acid

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