Polypharmacy in oligopopulations: what psychiatric genetics ... : Psychiatric Genetics (original) (raw)

MINIREVIEW

Polypharmacy in oligopopulations: what psychiatric genetics can teach biological psychiatry

Laboratory of Neurophenomics, Institute of Psychiatric Research, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Correspondence and requests for reprints to Alexander B. Niculescu III, MD, PhD, Laboratory of Neurophenomics, Institute of Psychiatric Research, Indiana University School of Medicine, 791 Union Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA

E-mail: [email protected]

Point of View Section: Genetics in Neuroscience

We are starting a new Point of View Section called “Genetics in Neuroscience”. It will be focused on how psychiatric genetics and genomics inform, and are in turn informed by, the broader body of work in neurosciences. Our premise is that advances in different fields can bootstrap and reinforce each other in a Bayesian fashion, leading to breakthroughs that each field alone may not have been able to make. While craftsmanship is to be prized at all times in any scientific field, and it is particularly appreciated in mature fields like psychiatric genetics, creativity has its place in moving fields forward, sometimes dramatically. We hope this section will be a forum for new ideas and perspectives that will spur on discussions and, more importantly, future interdisciplinary collaborative work.

John I. Nurnberger, Jr, MD, PhD, Editor

Alexander B. Niculescu, III, MD, PhD, Assistant Editor, Point of View Section Editor.

Future submissions for this section should be addressed to the attention of Dr Niculescu ([email protected])

Accepted 25 August 2006

Abstract

Psychiatric genetics and genomics have made major strides in recent years. Some of that knowledge has yet to permeate in the clinical practice of biological psychiatry. The example of cancer-genetics, biology and clinical treatments may be profitable in terms of accelerating translational integration in psychiatry. We propose that current developments in genetics and genomics point to an Early Low-Dose Rational Polypharmacy in Oligopopulations model for psychiatric pharmacotherapy.