The impact of quetiapine on the brain lipidome in a cuprizone-induced mouse model of schizophrenia

Biomed Pharmacother. 2020 Nov:131:110707. doi: 10.1016/j.biopha.2020.110707. Epub 2020 Sep 6.

Abstract

The antipsychotic effect of Quetiapine (Que) has been extensively studied and growing evidence suggests that Que has a beneficial effect, improving cognitive functions and promoting myelin repair. However, the effects of Que on the brain lipidome and the association between Que-associated cognitive improvement and changes in lipids remain elusive. In the present study, we assessed the cognitive protective effects of Que treatment and used a mass spectrometry-based lipidomic approach to evaluated changes in lipid composition in the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex (PFC), and striatum in a mouse model of cuprizone (CPZ)-induced demyelination. CPZ induces cognitive impairment and remarkable lipid changes in the brain, specifically in lipid species of glycerophospholipids and sphingolipids. Moreover, the changes in lipid classes of the PFC were more extensive than those observed in the hippocampus and striatum. Notably, Que treatment ameliorated cuprizone-induced cognitive impairment and partly normalized CPZ-induced lipid changes. Taken together, our data suggest that Que may rescue cognitive behavioral changes from CPZ-induced demyelination through modulation of the brain lipidome, providing new insights into the pharmacological mechanism of Que for schizophrenia.

Keywords: Brain lipidome; Cognitive function; Cuprizone; Myelination; Quetiapine; Schizophrenia.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Brain / drug effects*
  • Brain / metabolism
  • Cognition / drug effects
  • Cuprizone / toxicity*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Lipidomics*
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Quetiapine Fumarate / pharmacology*
  • Quetiapine Fumarate / therapeutic use
  • Schizophrenia / chemically induced
  • Schizophrenia / drug therapy*

Substances

  • Quetiapine Fumarate
  • Cuprizone