Schizophrenia

Rh Incompatibility 

Why is it that boys are more likely to trigger an immunological rejection by the mother than girls? This was a question that came up in this week's reading assignment. It was stated that if a mother is Rh-negative and her a baby is Rh-positive, the baby's Rh-positive blood factor may trigger an immunological rejection by the mother. Thus babies born with Rh incompatibility have twice the possibility of having schizophrenia, however, it is more intense in boys than in girls-why is that?

What I learned from researching an answer to my question, is that the formation of schizophrenia could occur by interfering with the early stages of  brain development. One way it can be interfered is by Rh incompatibility. It is said that boys increase the risk of miscarriages, the linked article states that this is due to baby boys secreting proteins linked to the male Y chromosome. This can cause the mother's immune system to form antibodies to fight off the "invader". However, it mostly occurs when the mother is Rh-negative and the child Rh-positive.  In the United States Rh incompatibility has become uncommon, for it is preventable by treating the mother with RhoGAM (special immune globulins). 

So how does Rh incompatibiltiy lead to schizophrenia? Rh incompatibility causes destruction of red blood cells, which are the primary carriers of oxygen throughout the body, thus if there aren't enough blood cells, there is a deficit in oxygen. So schizophrenia could be caused by the brain not receiving enough oxygen during fetal development, thus key brain areas such as the hippocampus or the basal ganglia are not properly developed.  

Although there still needs to be more research on how Rh incompatibility can lead to schizophrenia, it is something that should be taken into consideration. Thus I believe it is important for pregnant women to take care of themselves not only emotionally, but physically as well. It is important to check if they carry the Rh factor and if they do to see if their child is compatible and if not to get treated right away to prevent further complications, such as the child developing schizophrenia.