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World J Psychiatry. Aug 19, 2026; 16(8): 120278
Published online Aug 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.120278
Published online Aug 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.120278
Assessment of nerve growth factor levels and clinical indicators for outcome prediction in first-episode schizophrenia
Wen-Huan Xiao, Kuan-Yu Chen, Dou-Dou Yu, Ya-Qin Zhao, Jin-Rong Sun, Department of Psychiatry, Affiliated Wutaishan Hospital of Medical College of Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225003, Jiangsu Province, China
Mo-Lan Wang, Department of Neurology, Affiliated Wutaishan Hospital of Medical College of Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225003, Jiangsu Province, China
Co-first authors: Wen-Huan Xiao and Mo-Lan Wang.
Co-corresponding authors: Ya-Qin Zhao and Jin-Rong Sun.
Author contributions: Xiao WH and Wang ML were responsible for study design, statistical analysis, manuscript preparation; they contributed equally to this work and share co-first authorship; Chen KY, Yu DD, and Zhao YQ were responsible for recruiting the subjects, collecting clinical data, and performing the clinical rating; Xiao WH, Zhao YQ, and Sun JR were involved in writing the protocol and providing funding for the study; Zhao YQ and Sun JR contributed equally to this work and share co-corresponding authorship; Sun JR is the primary corresponding author responsible for all communication with the journal. All authors contributed to and have approved the final manuscript.
AI contribution statement: This manuscript used DeepL for language spelling and grammar checking, as well as for language polishing and expression optimization in specific paragraphs. The AI tool did not directly generate any original scientific content. All ideas, data, and conclusions were independently completed by the authors.
Supported by Yangzhou City Basic Research Program (Joint Special Project) - Health and Wellness Category, No. 2023-2-36, No. 2023-4-24, No. 2024-3-31, and No. 2025-2-21; and Scientific Research Project of Wutaishan Hospital of Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, No. WTS2025001 and No. WTS2025003.
Institutional review board statement: The Yangzhou Wutaishan Hospital Ethics Committee approved the study protocol.
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Corresponding author: Jin-Rong Sun, Department of Psychiatry, Affiliated Wutaishan Hospital of Medical College of Yangzhou University, No. 2 Wutaishan Road, Yangzhou 225003, Jiangsu Province, China. 1723487395@qq.com
Received: February 26, 2026
Revised: April 1, 2026
Accepted: May 28, 2026
Published online: August 19, 2026
Processing time: 145 Days and 19.9 Hours
Revised: April 1, 2026
Accepted: May 28, 2026
Published online: August 19, 2026
Processing time: 145 Days and 19.9 Hours
Core Tip
Core Tip: This study in first-episode schizophrenia found that baseline serum nerve growth factor (NGF) levels were sig