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Progress in the use of microarray technology to study the neurobiology of disease

Nature Neuroscience volume 7, pages 434–439 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

The diverse functions of the brain are mediated by neurons and glia whose phenotype is defined by a dynamically maintained set of gene transcripts, or 'transcriptome'. Large-scale analysis of gene expression in postmortem brain using microarray technology has the potential to elucidate molecular changes that occur in disease states. There are unique challenges associated with studies of postmortem brain, including limited sample sizes and variable clinical phenotypes that are typical of complex disorders. Nevertheless, recent microarray-based studies have implicated both individual dysregulated genes and abnormal patterns of gene expression in brain disorders.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to N. Varg for critical comments and valuable suggestions regarding the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, E1453 Biomedical Science, Pittsburgh, 15261, Pennsylvania, USA

    Károly Mirnics

  2. Department of Neurology, and the Department of Neuroscience, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, 707 N. Broadway, Baltimore, 21205, Maryland, USA

    Jonathan Pevsner

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Mirnics, K., Pevsner, J. Progress in the use of microarray technology to study the neurobiology of disease. Nat Neurosci 7, 434–439 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn1230

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