Stem cell-based models and therapies: a key approach into schizophrenia treatment
Bagher Larijani 1, Peyvand Parhizkar Roudsari 2, Mahdieh Hadavandkhani 3, Sepideh Alavi-Moghadam 3, Mostafa Rezaei-Tavirani 4, Parisa Goodarzi 5, Forough Azam Sayahpour 6, Fereshteh Mohamadi-Jahani 5, Babak Arjmand 7 8


Psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia can generate distress and disability along with heavy costs on individuals and health care systems. Different genetic and environmental factors play a pivotal role in the appearance of the mentioned disorders. Since the conventional treatment options for psychiatric disorders are suboptimal, investigators are trying to find novel strategies. Herein, stem cell therapies have been recommended as novel choices. In this context, the preclinical examination of stem cell-based therapies specifically using appropriate models can facilitate passing strong filters and serious examination to ensure proper quality and safety of them as a novel treatment approach. Animal models cannot be adequately helpful to follow pathophysiological features. Nowadays, stem cell-based models, particularly induced pluripotent stem cells reflected as suitable alternative models in this field. Accordingly, the importance of stem cell-based models, especially to experiment with the regenerative medicine outcomes for schizophrenia as one of the severe typing of psychiatric disorders, is addressed here.