Everyone has pathogenic antibodies in their blood, however; it is the specific ones seen in individuals with psychosis that are being tested. If the immune system mistakenly attacks the brain by releasing antibodies, these antibodies will attach to pathogens to neutralise them and this process can result in a form of psychosis and/or encephalitis.
As part of the PPIP2 study, the Oxford Health Mental Health Research & Delivery Team obtain blood samples from patients with psychosis to test for these specific pathogenic antibodies. Anyone of these patients who test positive for these antibodies may then be eligible to take part in the SINAPPS2 study, which is trialling an immunotherapy treatment aimed at targeting these antibodies as a way of treating psychosis.
The PPIP2 antibody test uses different cell arrangement techniques and is more accurate than the standard NHS antibody test, where individuals in the past could have mistakenly tested negative due to the lack of accuracy of the test. There are many examples where individuals and psychosis patients experience psychosis-like symptoms and don’t respond to current antipsychotics . Only after taking an antibody-specific blood test do these patients realise that they may benefit from alternative treatments, such as immunotherapy.
This is a revolutionary study which could help to discover causes of psychosis that traditional psychiatric treatments are not able to treat.
The Mental Health Research and Delivery Team at Oxford Health has been recognised as one of the most successful recruiters to thePPIP2 study nationally, and they would like to take this opportunity to thank to all the clinical teams and wards that continue to facilitate the study.
This study has demonstrated an excellent joint effort in improving healthcare service through research.
In this BBC interview, Abi Burton a GB 7 Olympian explains how this antibody test research impacted on her illness and subsequent treatment:
Published: 21 May 2024