How Can Models Be Better Utilized to Enhance Outcome? A Framework for Advancing the Use of Models in Schizophrenia

Excerpt

The heterogeneity of schizophrenia at the clinical and etiological levels presents a huge obstacle to understanding the biology of this disorder, or even knowing how to conceptualize it. This chapter discusses how animal, cellular, and computational models can be used to explore convergence at the intervening level of pathophysiology. It considers such models as experimental platforms to investigate specific neurobiological hypotheses, in particular to elucidate causal chains of pathogenic events, from initial molecular and cellular disruptions to eventual effects on neural networks and brain systems underlying specific symptom domains. The ultimate goal is to increase understanding of the neurobiological underpinnings of all aspects of the disorder (etiology, pathogenesis, pathophysiology, symptomatology) to a point where we can rationally identify new therapeutic targets or points of intervention to help break the deadlock in the development of treatments for this devastating disorder.