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A review of the possible relevance of inositol and the phosphatidylinositol second messenger system (PI‐cycle) to psychiatric disorders—focus on magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) studies
Author(s) -
Kim Hyeonjin,
McGrath Brent M.,
Silverstone Peter H.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
human psychopharmacology: clinical and experimental
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.461
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1099-1077
pISSN - 0885-6222
DOI - 10.1002/hup.693
Subject(s) - bipolar disorder , inositol , panic disorder , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , psychiatry , lithium (medication) , phosphatidylinositol , psychology , second messenger system , neuroscience , medicine , signal transduction , biology , biochemistry , anxiety , receptor
Myo ‐inositol is an important part of the phosphatidylinositol second messenger system (PI‐cycle). Abnormalities in nerve cell myo ‐inositol levels and/or PI‐cycle regulation has been suggested as being involved in the pathophysiology and/or treatment of many psychiatric disorders including bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, panic disorder, obsessive‐compulsive disorder, eating disorders and schizophrenia. This review examines the metabolism and biochemical importance of myo ‐inositol and the PI‐cycle. It relates this to the current in vivo evidence for myo ‐inositol and PI‐cycle involvement in these psychiatric disorders, particularly focusing upon the magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) findings in patient studies to date. From this review it is concluded that while the evidence suggests probable relevance to the pathophysiology and/or treatment of bipolar disorder, there is much less support for a significant role for the PI‐cycle or myo ‐inositol in any other psychiatric disorder. More definitive investigation is required before PI‐cycle dysfunction can be considered specific to bipolar disorder. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.