Yet they exhibited the disorder in different ages (with more than 10-year
difference in the first hospitalization between sisters) and displayed different
symptoms, probably due to different emotional and other experiences lived even
within the same household.^53
Recent studies have identified the following epigenetic dysregulations to be
relevant for schizophrenia: differential methylation patterns in the regulating
regions of catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), reelin (RELN), and serotonin
5-HT2A receptor (HTR2A) genes; dysfunction of histone deacetylase, type
1 (HDAC1), causing histone modifications responsible for the changes in the
metabolism of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA); miRNA dysregulation.^54
There is still a long way before the detection of genetic and other factors
responsible for the development of the disease will allow personalized treatments
for schizophrenia.
4 Role of Stem Cell Therapy in Personalized Medicine
of CNS Diseases
The important breakthrough in personalized medicine of diseases and disorders of
CNS could come with the manipulation and usage of stem cells. Stem cells could be
fundamental for autotransplantation and tissue engineering strategies.
The induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS; pluripotent stem cells obtained by
genetic reprogramming of mature cells from various tissues) are becoming the
major tools in the advancement of personalized therapies.^55 The iPS could have
the important role in the treatment and cure of neurodegenerative diseases since the
positive results have been already obtained inin vitrostudies for Alzheimer’s,^56
Parkinson’s,^57 and Hungtington’s diseases,^58 for example. The iPS cells represent
hope not only for neurodegenerative diseases but also for the treatment of brain and
spinal cord injuries.^59
Manipulation of endogenous mammalian neural stem cells could represent
another valid alternative to stem cell transplantation strategy for neurodegenerative
diseases and brain and spinal cord injuries since the approach is noninvasive and
avoids the need for immune suppression of patients. Indeed, in lower vertebrates,
which can completely recover after spinal cord injury, the endogenous spinal stem
cells play a major role in the spinal cord regeneration process. The neural stem cell
(^53) Segal ( 2001 ).
(^54) Ozomaro et al. ( 2013 ).
(^55) Ferreira and Mostajo-Radji ( 2013 ).
(^56) Israel et al. ( 2012 ).
(^57) Devine et al. ( 2011 ).
(^58) An et al. ( 2012 ).
(^59) Nori et al. ( 2011 ) and Kobayashi et al. ( 2012 ).
250 M.M. Pejatovic ́and S. Anzic ́