Rubio-Contreras Enric, Guasch-Capella Nora, Martínez-Pinteño Albert, Olivares-Berjaga David, Morén Constanza
Department of Basic and Clinical Practice, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain.
Barcelona Clínic Schizophrenia Unit (BCSU), Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Neuroscience, Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, University of Barcelona, 08036 Barcelona, Spain.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Sep 7;26(17):8718. doi: 10.3390/ijms26178718.
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a complex psychiatric disorder with positive, negative, and cognitive symptoms that cause long-term functional impairment. Despite available treatments, limitations in addressing cognitive and negative symptoms, medication side effects, and poor adherence highlight the need for novel biomarkers to support precision medicine. Hair has emerged as a promising, non-invasive biological matrix for biomarker research. Hair analysis has been explored to detect trace elements, abused drugs, antipsychotics, cortisol, neurotransmitters, and to assess gene expression, with results often consistent with blood, urine, and post-mortem tissues. Its advantages include ease of sampling and the ability to provide long-term information, while limitations involve individual variability and methodological inconsistencies. This review summarizes current evidence on hair-based biomarkers in SCZ, critically evaluating their potential and challenges. By integrating molecular, metabolic, and genetic findings, we highlight the value of hair as a complementary tool for advancing biomarker discovery and personalized approaches in SCZ.
精神分裂症（SCZ）是一种复杂的精神疾病，具有阳性、阴性和认知症状，会导致长期功能障碍。尽管有可用的治疗方法，但在解决认知和阴性症状、药物副作用以及依从性差方面存在局限性，这凸显了对新型生物标志物以支持精准医学的需求。头发已成为生物标志物研究中一种有前景的非侵入性生物基质。人们已探索通过头发分析来检测微量元素、滥用药物、抗精神病药物、皮质醇、神经递质，并评估基因表达，其结果通常与血液、尿液和死后组织一致。其优点包括采样容易以及能够提供长期信息，而局限性包括个体差异和方法不一致。本综述总结了目前关于精神分裂症中基于头发的生物标志物的证据，批判性地评估了它们的潜力和挑战。通过整合分子、代谢和遗传研究结果，我们强调了头发作为推进精神分裂症生物标志物发现和个性化方法的补充工具的价值。
