Picture
Val Corzine
Dr. Chris Palmer

Metabolism, Mitochondria and Bipolar Disorder (2022)​

Working to Eliminate Homelessness & Criminal Justice Involvement of People with Cognitive Disabilities


  • Current Scientific Research
  • Legal Analysis, and
  • Authenticity & Lived Experience

NARCISSISM, immaturity or
A Kind of pre-mature aging

in Neuro-Developmental, Psychiatric &/or ADDICTION Disorders

developmental mitochondrial dysfunction & 
ImmunoSENESCENCE [Aging of the immune System]

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • I'm defining "Pre-Mature Aging" as jump-starting "Mitochondrial Dysfunction," often through MATERNAL IMMUNE ACTIVATION.​
  • "Mitochondrial Dysfunction" is ubiquitous in:
    • Sensory Processing Abnormalities,
    • Disease,
    • Chronic Pain,
    • Aging,
    • Cell Death,
    • etc.
  • So Mitochondrial Dysfunction is not unique to Neuro-Developmental, Psychiatric or Addiction Disorders.
    • Further, there is more and more focus on the Developmental Origins of Health & Disease (DOHaD).
MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION & IMMUNOSENESCENCE
Influence of Immune System Abnormalities Caused by Maternal Immune Activation in the Postnatal Period  (2024)

*Japanese Researchers

Evaluating the link between immune characteristics and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder through a bi-directional Mendelian randomization study  (2024)

*Chinese Researchers
Correlations between personality traits, personality disorders, and immunometabolic markers  (2024)

*Swedish Researchers
De Staat
Witch Doctor
For the person who is PRE-MATURELY AGING --- that can look like ASYNCHRONY.

Additionally, the DYNAMICS of this PRE-MATURE AGING and ASYNCHRONY are not necessarily playing out the way we might think.
LEVELS of ANALYSIS & DEFINITIONS
  • DEFINING PEOPLE IN and OUT of Diagnostic Categories, Age, and "Morality"
    • ​Much of recent research is considering Anti-Social Personality Disorder as a Neuro-Developmental Disorder.
    • In some quarters, this is controversial-- the diagnostic criteria themselves reference age.
Antisocial Personality Disorder DSM-5-TR [Text Revision] Criteria 
  1. The presence of a pervasive pattern of disregard for and violation of the rights of others. This behavior begins by age 15 and is present in various contexts. Clinical features include ≥3 of the following:
    1. Failure to conform to social norms concerning lawful behaviors, such as performing acts that are grounds for arrest.
    2. Deceitfulness, repeated lying, use of aliases, or conning others for pleasure or personal profit.
    3. Impulsivity or failure to plan.
    4. Irritability and aggressiveness, often with physical fights or assaults.
    5. Reckless disregard for the safety of self or others.
    6. Consistent irresponsibility, failure to sustain consistent work behavior, or honor monetary obligations.
    7. Lack of remorse, indifference to or rationalizing having hurt, mistreated, or stolen from another person.
  3. The individual is at least age 18.
  4. There is evidence of conduct disorder with onset before age 15.
  5. The occurrence of antisocial behavior is not exclusively during the course of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. 

​Adults who do not have evidence of conduct disorder in childhood and adolescence but otherwise meet the diagnostic criteria for ASPD can be diagnosed with adult antisocial behavior.

While adult antisocial behavior is not a formal DSM-5-TR diagnosis, the DSM-5-TR lists it as a V code, used in the DSM and International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9), or Z code used in the ICD-10. 
See Antisocial Personality Disorder (2024) on StatPearls.

Preview

The hard algebra of the biological basis of behavior

​and Anti-Social Personality Disorder

Val's Take/Conjecture
​
  • Plato had some empirical basis for his forms, even if it was scant by our standards or Aristotle's.
  • With regard to the CATEGORIES in the DSM-5-TR, there's much more of an empirical basis for them than for Plato's forms or even Aristotle's empirical categorical systems.
  • These nice, neat, distinct DSM CATEGORIES that have become Platonic Forms in the name of STANDARDIZATION ---
    • ​are not supported by the research.
"Plato's Theory of Forms, which posits that true reality lies in eternal, unchanging Forms, has faced significant criticism, particularly from his student Aristotle.

"Key criticisms include the separation of Forms from the physical world, the \"Third Man\" argument leading to infinite regress, and the difficulty of applying the theory to the everyday world." ---Google AI
"Aristotle will also go on to spend even more space criticizing that very account primarily the notion of the forms as contributing to wisdom."  --- The Philosophy Guy
OBSERVABLE BEHAVIOR is RELEVANT.

ENVIRONMENT is RELEVANT.
The UNDERLYING BIOLOGY is a NON-NEGOTIABLE VARIABLE in Medicine.
Dr. Thomas Insel, then Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, said mental health professionals try to help people change through compassion --- but much of what they do is more RELIGION than SCIENCE.
When one doesn't have the science, it doesn't seem like a significant problem.

Well, we're getting the SCIENCE, but the mental health profession does not appear to appreciate the gravity of the situation, especially in Criminal Justice and especially with respect to Anti-Social Personality Disorder.

Cytokines as NEuro-Modulators

The Pace of research continues to quicken

It's not just "Neuro-Developmental" and "Psychiatric" Disorders --- it's also "Addiction"

Val's Take/Conjecture
A Brief History of Neuromodulation
Current Advances in Behavioral Addictions: From Fundamental Research to Clinical Practice (2025)
Given that behavioral addictions are prevalent, frequently co-occur with psychiatric disorders, may often go undiagnosed and untreated, and have been linked to poorer treatment outcomes, active screening and treatment are indicated.

Public health considerations should be expanded, and impacts of modern technologies should be investigated more intensively.

Treatment optimization involving pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, neuromodulation, and their combination warrants additional investigation.
Unveiling causal relationships between addiction phenotypes and inflammatory cytokines: insights from bidirectional mendelian randomization and bibliometric analysis (2025)
Cytokines as neuromodulators: insights from experimental studies in humans and non-human primates  (2025)
Abstract

​Beyond their role in immune signalling, cytokines have emerged as key neuromodulators influencing processes including neurotransmitter function, neuronal excitability, synaptic plasticity, neurogenesis, myelination, and cortical sleep-state.

These roles are observed in both the healthy brain and during infections when they reorient motivational, cognitive, and emotional responses.

Experimental evidence from human and non-human primate immune challenge studies has been pivotal to understanding these effects.

By showing that elevated cytokines readily induce transdiagnostic symptoms, including anhedonia, social withdrawal, psychomotor slowing, and cognitive impairment, they have also helped demonstrate that inflammation contributes to the shared neural dysfunction observed across psychiatric and neurological disorders.

Cytokines modulate glutamatergic and GABAergic neurotransmission, impair dopaminergic and serotonergic signalling, and regulate homeostatic synaptic scaling, leading to altered network connectivity and behavioural deficits.

While research has often focused on single cytokines in isolation, neuroimmune signalling occurs through combinatorial cytokine codes, requiring systems-level approaches to understand their interactive effects.

Advances in neuroimaging, molecular neuroscience, and biophysical modelling offer opportunities to link cellular cytokine action with macroscale network dysfunction, enabling mechanistic insights into cytokine-mediated neuromodulation.

Clinically, cytokine-targeting therapies hold promise for treating inflammation-driven cognitive and mood disorders, but their long-term impact on neuroplasticity remains uncertain.

Future research should characterize:
* immune signatures predictive of neuropsychiatric symptoms,
*identify cell-type-specific cytokine effects, and
*integrate multiscale modelling to refine understanding of neuroimmune interactions.

Reconceptualising cytokines as fundamental regulators of neural function rather than merely inflammatory mediators is crucial for developing precision medicine to mitigate immune-driven brain dysfunction and improve mental health outcomes.
Bullets added.

PREVIEW

Maternal immune responses, Gut MIcrobiota and Sexuality?

Male Homosexuality, Precocious puberty and Female Obesity​

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • ​20 years ago, if you were talking about the biological basis of behavior ---- it was GENETICS.
  • It became apparent that genetics wasn't explaining everything.
    • So there was the conclusion ---THIS IS ENVIRONMENTAL.
  • As it turned out there were other important BIOLOGICAL  FACTORS.   Additionally, the WHEN was important ---
    • We recognized first that Childhood Abuse or Neglect could affect the child's biology, and broader ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES (ACES) could have long-lasting effects.
    • Alcohol, Smoking and Drug Use during pregnancy have been recognized for having potentially long-lasting, lifelong effects. 
    • Now we're at
      • Maternal Immune Responses,
      • Maternal Immune Activation, and
      • Maternal Gut Microbiota,
      • all of which have a long-lasting impacts on the person throughout the lifespan.
And there's a lot more.
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Venus, Mars and Cupid c.1635 Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640)

​Art UK:  Rubens & Women:  Whose Afraid of Peter Paul Rubens?  (2023)

​CBS News:  ADHD linked to obesity in girls  (2016)

Val's Take
  • The common explanation for greater obesity in ADHD and Autism is "impulsivity."
  • Further, males with Neuro-Developmental Disorders have obesity issues, too --- but they are more common in women.

More recently, we've recognized MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION AND ​DYSREGULATED ATP PRODUCTION as issues in Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders.​

For the woman with MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION and DYSREGULATED ATP [Energy] PRODUCTION ---- 
Were her children surviving if she had more stored energy?

In some cases (though not all), there must have been an evolutionary advantage.

But evolutionary pressure in Modern Times for both men and women to be "THIN" or some version of "FIT" is INTENSE.

At least some of the current diet drugs seem to have an effect on MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION.
Tempo Bioscience
Bridging ADHD and Metabolic Disorders: Insights into Shared Mechanisms and Clinical Implications (2025)
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, impulsivity and/or hyperactivity.

In recent years, metabolic alterations, primarily obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes, have emerged as frequent comorbidities in individuals with ADHD, suggesting a bidirectional relationship between neurodevelopmental and metabolic  dysfunctions​
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in Canada

​New research solidifies idea that sexual orientation is biological (2017)
Bogaert, an internationally recognized expert in human sexuality, said the study is groundbreaking for at least two major reasons:

  • It supports the conclusion, suggested by previous studies, that genes alone do not completely account for homosexuality.
  • ​​​​It suggests that immunological factors should be considered along with genetic and hormonal factors as possible biological influences on sexual orientation. 

​​​Bogaert said that since the older brother effect was first discovered two decades ago, many studies have replicated it, including cross-cultural ones.

But when a Bogaert research project 10 years ago strongly indicated that the older brother effect in men was likely biological in origin, he saw the need to look at prenatal factors, and set out to test the major biological theory explaining this effect through a lab study.
Precocious puberty and microbiota: The role of the sex hormone-gut microbiome axis (2022)

​The Association between Autism Spectrum Disorder and Precocious Puberty: Considering Effect Modification by Sex and Neuropsychiatric Comorbidities  (2024)
We found that patients with ASD were prone to precocious puberty, regardless of sex or comorbid neuropsychiatric disorders.

Girls with ASD are at a particularly higher risk of developing precocious puberty.
A Multi-Perspective Qualitative Study About Working With Autistic Individuals in Prison-Based Interventions to Address Sexual Offending (2025)

*UK Researchers
​Maternal gut microbiota influences immune activation at the maternal-fetal interface, affecting pregnancy outcome (2025)
A SUMMING UP
  • In the words of Leonard Cohen --- "Everyone has something."
  • When it comes to Neuro-Developmental & Psychiatric Disorders  ---
    • ​There's both a lot of DIVERSITY and a lot of DYSREGULATION
    • In the midst of all that, there are often gifts.
  • In some research quarters and patient quarters, there has been a recognition for a long time that there needed to be MAJOR PARADIGM SHIFTS in:
    • Mental Health​
As we get those MAJOR PARADIGM SHIFTS in Mental Health --- it starts to shift our views on other issues that we might have considered unrelated.

Preview

Regulatory t Cells
​(a type of immune cell)

Are playing roles in Neuro-developmental & Psychiatric Disorders

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • There's a lot of NUANCE to T Cells and how they play out in Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders.

  • ​15 years ago, if we were educated --- we probably wanted people to understand that Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders were BRAIN DISORDERS.

  • In 2025, we want people to understand that Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disarders are MULTI-SYSTEM DISORDERS and the IMMUNE SYSTEM is playing a huge role
One cell to rule them all: Immune regulation of the brain in autism spectrum disorder (2025)
Abstract
For 80 years there has been a link between autism and immune activation.

Studies point to dysfunction in immune responses in peripheral blood, gut mucosa, and brain.

Human postmortem brain studies in autism show increased differential expression of inflammatory immune genes, increased pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, and glial activation.

Immune cells in the brain are comprised of both tissue-resident cells and those recruited from the blood.

This includes regulatory T cells (Tregs) that foster immune tolerance and tissue repair.

Tregs reduce microglial reactivity, assist in regenerative and reparative processes, and promote differentiation of myelin-producing oligodendrocytes in the brain, thus modulating white matter development.

Neuroinflammation may be a universal autism phenotype independent of the underlying etiology that can be controlled by Tregs promoting homeostasis, microglia and oligodendrocyte function, and white matter development.
TH17/Treg lymphocyte balance is regulated by beta adrenergic and cAMP signaling  (2025)
Background:  Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating psychological disorder that also presents with neuroimmune irregularities.

Patients display elevated sympathetic tone and are at an increased risk of developing secondary autoimmune diseases.

​Conclusions: Our data depict a novel role for β1/2 adrenergic and cAMP signaling in the balance of TH17/Treg lymphocytes.

​These findings provide a new target for pharmacological therapy in both psychiatric and autoimmune diseases associated with IL-17A-related pathology.
Psychoneuroimmunology of Mood Disorders (2025)
AbstractRecent research has shed light on the intricate relationship between mood disorders, such as major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder (BD), and inflammation.

This chapter explores the complex interplay involving immune and metabolic dysfunction in the pathophysiology of these disorders, emphasizing their association with:
* autoimmunity/inflammatory conditions,
* chronic low-grade systemic inflammation,
*T cell overactivation, and
*immunosenescence [the Aging  of the Immune System]

This perspective underscores the notion that MDD [Major Depressive Disorder]and BD [Bipolar Disorder] are not solely brain disorders, highlighting their nature as multi-system conditions.
Fetal Treg cell reprogramming links maternal immunity to neurodevelopment (2025)
Low-dose interleukin-2 in patients with bipolar depression: A phase 2 randomised double-blind placebo-controlled trial  (2025)
Immune abnormalities including an insufficiency of regulatory T cells (Treg) and increased blood-based inflammatory markers have been observed in bipolar disorders (BD), particularly during depression.

​As Tregs are pivotal to control inflammation, Treg stimulation by low-dose IL-2 (IL-2LD) could have a therapeutic impact on bipolar depression.
Pan T cells, Helper T cells, and Regulatory T cells are Associated with Negative Symptoms in Persons with Anti-Gliadin Antibody Positive Schizophrenia and Related Disorders  (2025)
Conclusions: These hypothesis-generating findings highlight T cell dysfunction in AGA+ positive SRD  [Schizophrenia Related Disorders], suggesting Tregs protecting against negative symptom severity but also an unidentified other T cell population to possibly be driving negative symptom severity.

​Identification of immune cells and circulating inflammatory factors associated with neurodevelopmental disorders by bidirectional Mendelian randomization and mediation analysis (2025)
Strong causal relationships existed between immune cells, circulating inflammatory factors, and NDDs. Inflammatory factors mediated the pathways between immune cells and NDDs [Neurodevelopmental Disorders].
Emerging Mechanisms and Biomarkers Associated with T-Cells and B-Cells in Autoimmune Disorders  (2025)
A case study of a 9-year-old girl diagnosed with seronegative autoimmune encephalitis, who displayed severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and aggressive behavior, exemplifies the complexities involved in treatment.

Promising interventions, including CAR-T-cell therapy and nanomedicine, are under development for various autoimmune diseases, such as vitiligo and refractory autoimmune rheumatic diseases (ARDs).

​Furthermore, emerging therapies, including CAR-T-cell therapy, mRNA-based strategies, and microbiome modulation, are being explored alongside advancements in personalized medicine and early diagnostic techniques to improve patient outcomes for individuals affected by autoimmune diseases.
 Lead author:  Antonio L. Teixeira
Dr. Antonio Teixeira is at the University of Texas and is one of the world''s leaders in IMMUNO-PSYCHIATRY.
Published by Oxford University Press

"DEVELOPMENTAL PATHOLOGIES"

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • The INFLAMMATION received by offspring IN UTERO may, in some cases, be QUALITATIVELY DIFFERENT than inflammation received subsequently.
  • It matters WHEN one gets the inflammation.
  • The article to the right from the University of Texas is about "Autism," but ADHD, Bipolar Disorder, Depression and Schizophrenia are also associated with Maternal Immune Activation.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
  • Most people know that Autism and ADHD are  "Neuro-Developmental Disorders."
    • ​​Bipolar Disorder, Depression and Schizophrenia are also "Neuro-Developmental Disorders."
  • There is controversy regarding the effects of inflammation acquired after birth over the lifespan.
On the other hand . . .
​Modifiable lifestyle factors influencing neurological and psychiatric disorders mediated by structural brain reserve: An observational and Mendelian randomization study (2025)

* Chinese Researchers
This issue of "Lifestyle Choices" is a Public Policy Batteground.   The Chinese researchers identified why.
Since most brain diseases are either incurable or irreversible, they place a considerable burden on both society and the economy, highlighting the essential role of primary prevention in preserving brain health (Lazar et al., 2021).

​Modifiable lifestyle factors—behaviors that can be changed without professional intervention, such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity—are important targets for these prevention efforts
Neuroimmune and behavioral changes elicited by maternal immune activation in mice are ameliorated by early postnatal immune stimulation  (2025)

*Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin
Our results demonstrate that changes in repetitive-like and social behaviors that are induced by MIA [Maternal Immune Activation] in male mice are not exacerbated by subsequent inflammatory challenge and highlights the importance of considering the timing of stressors in the appearance of developmental pathology.
Highlights

  • Maternal immune activation (MIA) may act as a disease primer for neurodevelopmental pathology.

  • Here we investigated if MIA synergized with postnatal inflammation to exacerbate pathology.

  • MIA decreases sociability and increases repetitive-like behaviors in males.

  • CD8 + T cells are impacted by MIA in a sex-dependent manner.

  • Postnatal immune inflammation did not exacerbate ASD-like pathology in either sex.
Chinese researchers are aware of Maternal Immune Activation --- but you wouldn't know it from the paper to the left.

This fudging is common in the US as well, and that is why the Texas paper is so important ---
  • ​It is making clear that INFLAMMATION acquired IN UTERO is generally more significant.
  • Now --- that doesn't mean that "LIFESTYLE FACTORS" during the lifespan are irrelevant ---
    • but they are exceedingly complicated with many bi-directional relationships.
If we want to prevent Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders, we're focusing  on:
  • potential mothers,
  • potential fathers,
  • immunology and
  • obstetrics. 

PREVIEW

Sensory processing differences across psychiatric Phenotypes

and Employment​

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • ​The "SPECIAL ABILITIES" of neuro-diverse people often involve differences in SENSORY PROCESSING.
  • In the Tech Sector, there's been recruitment of some neuro-diverse people who had extraordinary technical skills.
  • Just as not every neuro-diverse person is going to be able to win a fortune at the casinos --- not every neuro-diverse person is a technical genius, a musical virtuoso, or a gifted visual artist --- but some are.
TRY SMARTER, NOT HARDER
One of the defining characteristics of maternal immune activation is ANXIETY in "offspring."
  • That plays itself out in many different ways depending on sex, other biological factors, the environment, etc.
Additionally, for animals ---- UNPREDICTABLE CHRONIC STRESS can be profoundly damaging.
For many neuro-diverse people, jobs are BURNING THEM OUT repeatedly.
  • They'll need to find a position better structured for them personally or create something themselves.
We ignore those SENSORY PROCESSING DIFFERENCES at our peril --- BUT
  • Most of us didn't know we had sensory processing differences, and
  • Neither did anyone else.
What we did know is that we had some STRENGTHS and we were much fuzzier on what our true weaknesses were ----
  • Although many of us did try to address those weaknesses --
  • generally by WORKING HARDER, NOT SMARTER
  • In a sea of half-understandings, this can be catastrophic.

Sensory Processing Difficulties in Psychiatric Disorders (2022)

*Researchers from the Netherlands
  ​Highlights

Many individuals with psychiatric disorders report difficulties in sensory processing.

This meta-analysis examined sensory processing patterns in psychiatric conditions.

We detected a general pattern of sensory processing difficulties in psychopathology.

Sensory processing difficulties are considered to be a transdiagnostic phenotype.
​
Further research may improve long-term prognosis and treatment in psychiatry.
Employment is a critical mental health intervention (2020)
Strategies to Manage Mental Illness at Work  (2020)
WHAT ARE THE WEAKNESSES & WHY?
  • Executive Functioning 
  • Including EMOTIONAL DYSREGULATION
  • As a result of MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION, among other things.
Picture
Paul Gauguin, "The Siesta" 1892-1894

Why is it so important to get a new label or at least an additional label?

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • We've come a long way in reducing mental health stigma.
  • When we talk about why we aren't fully funding a Mental Health Continuum of Care, there are many reasons.
    • Policymakers would say --- we are spending a lot on Mental Health.
  • Many people view "MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT" as "SUBJECTIVE" and a "FINANCIAL BOTTOMLESS PIT."
  • There is a big need to lean into PRECISION PSYCHIATRY and understanding Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders as Complex Neuro-Immune Disorders.
A single one-word label is enough to change your brain's basic pre-conscious response to someone in pain.

Preview

China is a Major Mental Health research leader

with ground-breaking work in understanding the neuro-Immune connection to psychiatric disorders. 

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • ​​​China got into the Mental Health game like everyone else --- THE HARD WAY.
  • With regard to DSM controversies, China doesn't have a dog in that fight.
    • ​Although many Chinese scientific papers will note DSM categories are not valid.
      • ​BUT who first said that --- the US' National Institute of Mental Health over a decade ago.
  • Ironically, because China came so late to the Mental Health game, the political interests do not appear as entrenched.
  • There is a high number of papers coming out of China and around the world (including the US) elucidating excruciatingly complex biology involving Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders.​​
  • Are these new understandings any more widely known in China than they are in the US --- probably not.
Extracellular ATP Is a Homeostatic Messenger That Mediates Cell-Cell Communication in Physiological Processes and Psychiatric Diseases  (2025)
Causal Relationships Between Retinal Diseases and Psychiatric Disorders Have Implications for Precision Psychiatry (2025)
The prevalence and associated disability burden of mental disorders in children and adolescents in China: a systematic analysis of data from the Global Burden of Disease Study  (2025)
"Mental disorders are the leading causes of disability in children and adolescents in China, and the disease burden varies geographically.

"Careful planning of health services, including consideration of the local situation, is needed."
​Maternal natural killer cells drive neuroimmune disorders in offspring through aberrant secretion of extracellular granzyme B  (2025)
From Clinic to Mechanisms: Multi-Omics Provide New Insights into Cerebrospinal Fluid Metabolites and the Spectrum of Psychiatric Disorders  (2025)

Preview

TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE AS A
​JUSTICE ISSUE

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • A number of people and entities are talking about Translational Medicine in terms of Health Equity and Justice.​
  • We've had some significant Federal investment in Mental Health Research, and that seems to be paying off.
  • I've been known to say that if we just got out of the Punishment Business and went to Civil Certification --- things would be better.
    • ​And I think they would be --- probably.
    • I say "probably" because a small percentage of justice-involved people with psychiatric disorders would prefer a more definite prison term than an unpredictable civil commitment term.
  • BUT  that doesn't solve our DESPERATE NEED for better understandings and treatments. 
BHA Launches Colorado LIFTS, Increases Access to Behavioral Health Support (2025)
  • Colorado is probably not the only State that tries to address frightening shortages with administrative fixes.
  • BUT Colorado does it a lot.​​
  • On the other hand, will State Governments ever have enough funds for OUT-OF-DATE understandings and treatments in Mental Health.
  • MENTAL HEALTH has already EXHAUSTED the Public Health Care System.
  • Those new understandings and, to a certain extent, treatments are here  ---
    • But they are in a wide range of ACADEMIC JOURNALS and ACADEMIC TEXTS and maybe the occasional YouTube video.
    • Dr. Chris Palmer did write a book designed for the Public --- BRAIN ENERGY -- and it is helping to popularize some of these new paradigms along with METABOLIC MIND.
  • BUT there is a lot more out there than what is contained in BRAIN ENERGY and METABOLIC MIND in the observations and conclusions of researchers around the globe.

The big reveal

Neuro-Developmental, Psychiatric and Neuro-Degenerative disorders are --

NEURO-Immune Disorders

Val's Take/Conjecture
  • So one of the reasons why the Research has taken off is the identification of COMMON BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS of ILLNESS
    • ​Across not only ADHD, Autism, Bipolar Disorder, Depression and Schizophrenia
    • BUT also Neuro-Degenerative Diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, and
    • And perhaps most surprisingly, a long list of other NCDs --- Non-Communicable Diseases such as Autoimmune Disorders and Cancer that also involve disruptions in the CYTOKINE IMMUNE NETWORK.
      • ​We've heard about Cytokines for a long time concerning Cancer, but now we're talking about Cytokines and the Immune System in a broad range of illnesses and disorders, including Neuro-Developmental and Psychiatric Disorders.
PRECISION MEDICINE
  • The FLIP SIDE of these common NEURO-IMMUNE BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS is that there are many, many, many, many SOURCES OF INFLAMMATION and they play out quite INDIVIDUALLY ---
  • This is driving the need for PRECISION MEDICINE -- one size does not fit all.
From Homeostasis to Neuroinflammation: Insights into Cellular and Molecular Interactions and Network Dynamics  (2025)

*Researchers from Germany
"In this article, we first characterize the key players in neuroimmune interactions, including
  • microglia,
  • astrocytes,
  • neurons,
  • immune cells, and
  • essential signaling molecules such as
    • cytokines,
    • neurotransmitters,
    • extracellular matrix (ECM) components, and
    • neurotrophic factors.

Under homeostatic conditions, these elements promote cellular cooperation and stability, whereas in neuroinflammatory states, they drive adaptive responses that may become pathological if dysregulated.

We examine how neuroimmune interactions, mediated through these cellular actors and signaling pathways, create complex networks that regulate CNS functionality and respond to injury or inflammation.

To further elucidate these dynamics, we provide insights using a multilayer network (MLN) approach, highlighting the interconnected nature of neuroimmune interactions under both inflammatory and homeostatic conditions.

This perspective aims to enhance our understanding of neuroimmune communication and the mechanisms underlying shifts from homeostasis to neuroinflammation. 

​[Bullets added]
Prenatal and postnatal neuroimmune interactions in neurodevelopmental disorders  (2024)

​*Researchers from South Korea, Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Peripheral Immune-Inflammatory Pathways in Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, and Schizophrenia: Exploring Their Potential as Treatment Targets  (2025)

*Researchers from China, Iraq, Bulgaria, Belgium, Thailand and South Korea
"The evidence underscores the clinical importance of immune-targeted augmentation treatments in psychiatric disorders and supports the ongoing development of these novel pharmacotherapies within a precision medicine paradigm."
Efficacy of a Neuroimmune Therapy Including Pineal Methoxyindoles, Angiotensin 1-7, and Endocannabinoids in Cancer, Autoimmune, and Neurodegenerative Diseases  (2025)
Purpose: Recent advancements in psycho-neuro-endocrine-immunology indicate that numerous noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) originate from disruptions in the cytokine immune network, resulting in chronic inflammatory responses. . . .
Results: The neuroimmune regimen successfully halted cancer progression in 68% of cancer patients, who also reported improvements in mood, sleep, and relief from anxiety, pain, and fatigue.

In patients with autoimmune diseases, the treatment effectively controlled the disease process, remarkable in cases of multiple sclerosis.

Additionally, positive outcomes were observed in patients with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and depression.

PREVIEW

Work Requirements and Mitochondrial dysfunction across a spectrum


Anti-Social Personality Disorder as a

​Neuro-Developmental Disability
Associations of the immune system in aggression traits and the role of microglia as mediators (2024)

Policy Challenges

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