Some people with schizophrenia may simply have B3 deficiency

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Some People With Schizophrenia May Simply Have a Vitamin Deficiency

Quote:

The idea behind the hypothesis occurred to Esme Fuller-Thomson, professor at the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work (FIFSW) after learning about recent research conducted in South India. This study newly identified a link between schizophrenia and a variant of the gene NAPRT1, which lowers the body’s ability to use niacin, or Vitamin B3, which naturally occurs in meat, poultry, fish, and eggs.

“When I read this study a light bulb went on in my head,” says Fuller-Thomson, who published the hypothesis in the journal Schizophrenia Research this month with doctoral student, Rukshan Mehta. “This seems to be the missing link that explains all these medical mysteries.”

The researchers speculate that there is a critical interaction between an expectant mother’s prenatal niacin deficiency due to malnourishment and the NAPRT1 variant that impedes the fetus’ ability to use niacin. This interaction between the gene and the prenatal environment may predispose the offspring to develop a psychotic disorder.

Several studies indicate that the offspring of mothers who experience famine in their first trimester of pregnancy have double the chance of developing schizophrenia. Most researchers assume nutrient deficiency must be playing a role, but the particular nutrient has yet to be identified. Fuller Thomson now speculates that niacin may be the key nutrient involved.

Note that there is also a connection with the ketogenic diet.

Since NAPRT1 (Nicotinate phosphoribosyltransferase) is essential for increasing cellular NAD levels (preventing also oxidative stress of cells)
and NAD is also a precursor to SIRT6 which is also critical in DNA repair (thus longevity!)

See also


NAPRT1 (Nicotinate phosphoribosyltransferase) is essential for increasing cellular NAD levels and, thus, to prevent oxidative stress of cells. NAPRT1 converts Nicotinic acid (NA; niacin) to NA mononucleotide (NaMN), which is then converted to NA adenine dinucleotide (NaAD), and finally to nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD)

Ketogenic diet slows progression of 5 neuro degenerative diseases

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Source reference paper:

Letter to the editor/
Could a gene-environment interaction between NAPRT1 risk allele and pre-natal niacin deficiency explain 4 medical mysteries of schizophrenia research?/
Esme Fuller-Thomson, Rukshan Mehta; Schizophrenia Research
Available online 12 December 2019