Proteomic signatures of schizophrenia-sourced iPSC-derived astrocytes

Schizophrenia is a complex and severe neuropsychiatric disorder, with a wide range of debilitating symptoms. Several aspects of its multifactorial complexity are still unknown, and some are accepted to be an early developmental deficiency with a more specifically neurodevelopmental origin. ??Molecular and functional abnormalities in astrocytes play a role in the etiology and pathogenesis of schizophrenia. In this study, human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC)-derived astrocytes from schizophrenia patients were investigated regarding their proteome, inflammatory responses, and their secretome effect on vascularization. Proteomic analysis revealed alterations in proteins related to immune function and vascularization. Taken together, our results suggest that schizophrenia astrocytes are immunologically dysfunctional which might affect vascularization through secreted factors.