The Research of Dr. Linda Brzustowicz

Music Festival "Rising Star" scientist Dr. Linda Brzustowicz at Rutgers University:

Dr. Linda Brzustowicz

An elegant shotgun approach to identifying genetic interaction and expression

In working to understand which genes can cause susceptibility to schizophrenia, one challenge scientists face is that the illness appears to be a product of interactions among many genes. This year the Music Festival for Mental Health's first "Rising Star" scientist, Dr. Linda Brzustowicz of Rutgers has begun to trace the patterns of these interactions--and waded a little deeper into understanding how schizophrenia might begin. Using the “PPL” analysis that in the last two years has given her phenomenal resolving power for risk gene location, she has begun to identify genes that only seem to code for schizophrenia risk when combined with a mutation in another specific gene, NOS1AP, coding for risk. Her provisional interpretation: She has found some of the combinations that can compound this risk. If further testing pans out, she will have brought us a step closer to a general theory of schizophrenia genetics. In addition, her lab has teamed with colleagues at Ohio State to adapt the software they have used to run this study to the Windows platform, so that researchers everywhere can expand on this work, no high-end workstation required.

Also, Dr. Brzustowicz is nearing completion of her study to locate microRNAs whose expression is different in people with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder vs. healthy people. MicroRNAs are snippets of genetic material that help to govern the expression of genes. With all 400+ available microRNAs analyzed, she has found a small set which indeed appear to be expressed differently, and has evidence that some of these are affected by current antipsychotic medications. When statistical analysis of her results is complete, some of these microRNAs could provide epigenetic targets for research into new antipsychotic drugs.

Finally, she has deepened our understanding of the mechanism of one genetic disease known as a major source of schizophrenia risk for those who have it: DiGeorge Syndrome. Not only has she found a mutation in the DGCR8 gene (located in the DiGeorge region) that might contribute to the 25-fold increase in schizophrenia risk that comes with this syndrome, but she has ruled out all other possible genetic “deletions” in this region as likely contributing factors. In the coming year, she plans to study just how this mutation can affect DGCR8 expression to increase schizophrenia risk.

Download this research profile in PDF form

The "Rising Star" award

Since 2005, the Music Festival for Mental Health has been stimulating breakthrough research by supporting scientists early in their careers. The "Rising Star" Awards are $250,000 grants to help outstanding young scientists expand their research. In addition to the schizophrenia research award we have given annually for four years, this year we are offering four new awards for work in the development of means to provide individualized therapies for patients, and for pioneering research into the genetics of mental illnesses.

Dr. Brzustowicz joins Dr. Schahram Akbarian of University of Massachusetts, Dr. Akira Sawa of the Johns Hopkins University and Dr. Eva Anton of Rutgers University as scientists who have received this grant from the Music Festival--and who are continuing groundbreaking research today.

How you can support this research

Many festival-sponsored scientists will be present at next year's Music Festival for Mental Health on September 12, 2009. For a chance to meet them in person, please buy tickets to attend. Or, you can make a tax-deductible donation to the cause. To learn more, please see the page on our mission, or email or call us at (707) 944-0477 if you have any questions. Thank you!

Shari, Garen, Brandon and Shannon Staglin

About next year's event