Afflicting one percent of the adult population with devastating hallucinations, delusions and social impairment, schizophrenia has long been known to have a genetic component. Ridha Joober, MD, PhD, joined the Douglas Institute Research Centre in 1999 and has since made significant strides in unv...
Afflicting one percent of the adult population with devastating hallucinations, delusions and social impairment, schizophrenia has long been known to have a genetic component. Ridha Joober, MD, PhD, joined the Douglas Institute Research Centre in 1999 and has since made significant strides in unveiling the pharmaco-genetic basis of schizophrenia and in identifying genes modulating animal behavioral traits relevant to schizophrenia.
As a major research focus, Ridha Joober has compared the genetic make-up and neuropsychological impairments of schizophrenics at opposite ends of the spectrum -- those that respond to neuroleptic treatments and those that fail to respond. In so doing, Ridha Joober has developed a more precise pharmaco-genetic profile of schizophrenia that may ultimately lead to the earlier diagnosis and more effective treatment of this debilitating mental disease.
Ridha has also brought us closer to identifying a gene, or genetic segment, that may be involved in the etiology of schizophrenia or in modifying the disease phenotype with regard to outcome and/or neuroleptic responsiveness. More recently, he extended his studies to other neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).