MentalHealthDaily

Depression vs. Schizophrenia: Microglial TSPO and KYNA Signals

by GLOOM

MHD featured image for microglial and kynurenine pathway patterns across depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

A 2026 systematic review found that microglia-related immune signals do not line up cleanly with psychiatric diagnosis labels: major depression showed frontolimbic TSPO-PET increases, while schizophrenia showed elevated kynurenic acid in cerebrospinal fluid.1 The strongest interpretation is that immune-brain markers may sort subgroups better than DSM categories do. Research Highlights Depression had the clearest TSPO-PET …

NeuroMark SPECT Found 23 Schizophrenia Perfusion Network Changes

by GLOOM

MHD featured image for NeuroMark SPECT schizophrenia perfusion-network research.

A 2026 medRxiv preprint built a reusable NeuroMark SPECT template from 2 large independent component analysis rounds, then applied it to 137 schizophrenia patients and 76 controls; after false-discovery-rate correction, 23 of 68 perfusion components differed between groups.1 Those data support infrastructure for comparing SPECT perfusion networks across datasets, with standalone schizophrenia diagnosis left outside …

England Forensic Mental Health Services: 32-Team Map

by GLOOM

Community forensic mental health services are supposed to bridge secure hospitals, prisons, community psychiatry, and risk management. A 2026 mapping study of England found that these services still vary substantially in structure, referral routes, psychological treatments, and the way they handle restricted patients.1 Research Highlights 32 services were mapped: Freedom of Information responses from NHS …

Reward Activation Failed as Bipolar-Psychosis Endophenotype

by GLOOM

MHD featured image for reward brain activation and bipolar-psychosis endophenotype testing.

A 244-person functional MRI study found no significant evidence that ventral striatum activation during reward anticipation works as an endophenotype — a measurable trait used to connect inherited risk with diagnosed illness — for bipolar and psychotic disorders. Research Highlights The registered hypothesis failed: Barendse et al. found no significant ventral striatum reward-anticipation difference among …

Single-Session tDCS Fails Working-Memory Test in Schizophrenia

by GLOOM

Stylized illustration of tDCS electrodes positioned over the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex on a brain outline, with a pre-post working-memory task in the foreground, representing the null-result trial in schizophrenia.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) has been pitched as a scalable cognitive-enhancement tool for schizophrenia, where roughly 98% of patients show working-memory deficits, but a 2026 sham-controlled crossover trial from Ke et al. delivered the standard 1.5 mA anodal protocol over the right DLPFC to 27 stable patients and found no detectable benefit over sham.1 …

Schizophrenia Risk Genes Reshape Microglial Pruning in CRISPR Screen

by GLOOM

Stylized microglial cell engulfing synaptic material with CRISPR gene-editing elements, representing schizophrenia risk genes altering synaptic pruning.

Schizophrenia’s genetic architecture sits awkwardly between neurons and the immune system. A 2026 CRISPR screen of 30 schizophrenia-associated genes in human microglia-like cells found that several risk genes meaningfully alter how microglia engulf synaptic material, supporting the synaptic-pruning model at the functional gene level.1 Research Highlights 30 schizophrenia risk genes were knocked out one by …

SMART Texts Raised Diabetes Confidence in Schizophrenia

by GLOOM

MHD featured image for SMART text messages and diabetes self-management in schizophrenia.

A 12-week text-message intervention for people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders improved diabetes self-management confidence and patient activation, but it did not yet move weight, HbA1c, physical activity, or psychiatric symptoms. SMART looked feasible and psychologically useful in this uncontrolled pilot; cardiometabolic outcomes need a full-scale randomized trial with longer follow-up.1 Research Highlights SMART was tested …