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Stimulating development of new drugs to improve cognition in schizophrenia

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Current Psychosis & Therapeutics Reports

Abstract

Cognitive deficits are core features of schizophrenia that are critical determinants of poor functional outcome. Until recently, the development of novel pharmacologic treatments that specifically target these deficits has been impeded by a lack of consensus about which domains of cognition should be covered and how they should be measured in clinical trials. The National Institute of Mental Health Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) Initiative was designed to overcome these barriers by creating a consensus-based pathway through which procognitive compounds can ultimately attain regulatory approval. This review summarizes the rationale for the MATRICS Initiative, some of its achievements to date, and promising pharmacologic targets for the cognitive deficits of schizophrenia.

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  1. University of California Los Angeles, 300 Medical Plaza, Room 2240, 90095-6968, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    William P. Horan PhD

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  1. William P. Horan PhD
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  2. Yuri Rassovsky PhD
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  3. Michael F. Green PhD
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Horan, W.P., Rassovsky, Y. & Green, M.F. Stimulating development of new drugs to improve cognition in schizophrenia. Current Psychosis & Therapeutics Reports 3, 68–73 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02629424

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