[Specific features of immunological reactions in elderly and young patients with exacerbation of schizophrenia]. / Osobennosti immunologicheskikh reaktsii u patsientov pozhilogo i molodogo vozrasta s obostreniem shizofrenii.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To identify levels of inflammation markers (the enzymatic activity of leukocyte elastase (LE), the functional activity of the α1-proteinase inhibitor (α1-PI), autoantibodies to neurotrophin S100b and myelin basic protein (MBP)) in blood plasma of old- and young-aged patients with schizophrenia in comparison with features of the clinical course of schizophrenia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Two age groups of patients with schizophrenia were examined. The 1st group consisted of 19 female patients, aged 60 to 78 years (mean age 67.3±5.4 years), with disease duration from 0.5 months to 29 years (9.7±7.6). The 2nd group comprised 24 female patients, aged 19 to 42 years (mean age 26.8±6.3 years), with disease duration from 0.15 to 6.6 years (3.3±2.4). Nineteen age-matched healthy women were included in two control groups. Inflammatory and autoimmune markers were measured in blood plasma using «Neuro-immuno-test technology¼. RESULTS: In the 1st group, a relative smoothness and rigidity of the productive symptoms profile, a reduction of disease progression and a tendency to the development of negative symptoms were established. The 2nd group was characterized by polymorphism, severity and dynamism of productive disorders, as well as the progression and lability of the schizophrenic process. The most significant differences in the spectrum of the analysed immune markers relate to the ratio of the activity of LE and its inhibitor α1-PI, i.e. proteinase-inhibitory index (PII). CONCLUSIONS: The identified multidirectional changes of PII in elderly patients compared to the controls may reflect the imbalance of the inflammatory response and the role of this imbalance in shaping the characteristics of psychopathological symptoms in these patients.