Overview
- A study published this week in Nature Genetics used genetic data from more than 102,000 people and RNA sequencing from hundreds of postmortem brains to map gene networks and identify 641 genes not previously linked to schizophrenia.
- Researchers built two co‑expression models called INGENE and MODULE that capture distal (trans) regulation and improved expression prediction for about 18,744 genes across six cortical brain regions.
- Combining the trans‑aware models with standard local (cis) predictors produced 766 genes associated with schizophrenia at a PFDR threshold, showing many risk signals are driven by long‑range regulatory programs rather than only nearby DNA variants.
- The newly implicated genes cluster in biological pathways tied to glutamate signaling, synaptic and neuronal communication, immune activity, and early brain development, which gives concrete pathway targets for lab follow‑up.
- Authors and institute leaders say the findings broaden targets for precision psychiatry and drug discovery but stress that laboratory experiments and clinical studies are needed before any direct patient applications can follow.