Schizophrenia as a possible dysfunction of the suprachiasmatic nucleus.

Psychosis and dreaming have many similarities, including delusions, hallucinations, bizarre thinking and perceptual distortions. This clinical observation has lead us to hypothesize that the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a hypothalamic center regulating sleep and wakefulness, is involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Schizophrenic patients have certain sleep architecture characteristics, and distinctive biological markers suggesting abnormity of the SCN, including irregular pattern of melatonin secretion, abnormal actigraphyic studies, D1-dopamine receptors involvement in the process of entraining the SCN and vulnerability to psychotic exacerbation due to jet lag.