Convergent evidence for Wnt signaling pathway in psychotic disorders

Wnt signaling pathway is involved in multiple cell processes including cell differentiation, cell development, and cell fate. Mutations in the Wnt pathway genes have been frequently found to cause cancer. Recently, there has been emerging evidence showing that abnormality of the Wnt pathway may also be involved in neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity; thus, it may play important roles in psychotic disorders. Here we performed a systematic collection and analysis of data from multiple sources linking Wnt pathway genes to indicate convergent evidence for this pathway in psychosis, especially in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Specifically, we explored KEGG pathways, protein-protein interactions (PPIs), association studies, genome-wide association (GWA) studies, and our recently developed schizophrenia gene resource (SZGR) database. Our analysis suggested some potential genes, including PPARD, FZD3, GRIN1, and AXIN1, warrant future genetic and functional validation of their roles in schizophrenia. In summary, we provided a unique integrative analysis of Wnt pathway genes in psychotic disorders.