Feinstein Institutes’ researchers find jumping genes at the center of blood immune networks disrupted in schizophrenia

This research is the first to integrate transposable elements into the blood gene expression networks of people with schizophrenia, revealing a widespread loss of connectivity

MANHASSET, N.Y., September 01, 2026--Unlocking a crucial piece of schizophrenia's molecular puzzle, scientists at Northwell Health's Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research have found that jumping genes, also known as transposable elements, are linked to a communication breakdown in the blood gene expression networks of people living with schizophrenia. Jumping genes are DNA sequences from ancient viruses and other elements that could once move around the human genome – and in rare cases still can. This discovery could open new paths for understanding, diagnosing and treating this complex mental illness.

The research, published today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation (JCI), led by Helena Reyes-Gopar, PhD, an investigator at the Feinstein Institutes, and Douglas F. Nixon, MD, PhD, director of the Institute of Translational Research at the Feinstein Institutes, looked at the activity of tens of thousands of genes – including jumping genes – in the blood from patients who were recently diagnosed and had not yet started treatment.

"For a long time, these elements were dismissed as junk DNA. Our study shows they are not only active in blood cells but form integral parts of the gene expression networks that operate in immune cells," said Dr. Reyes-Gopar, lead author of the paper.

Investigators compared these expression networks in 84 patients relative to 97 healthy individuals. By creating maps of how genes and transposable elements communicate with each other, they discovered significant differences in patients with schizophrenia.

"We found that transposable elements sit at important parts of the expression networks of healthy individuals, but their connections to the other parts of the network are weakened in patients," said Dr. Nixon. "By mapping these networks in the blood, we are opening new doors. One day this could help us develop therapies that precisely target the disrupted connections we see in schizophrenia."

The research revealed several crucial insights. In individuals with schizophrenia, the intricate communication network between genes and transposable elements was severely disrupted. In healthy individuals, these elements act as central hubs with extensive connections to other active genes, but in the newly diagnosed patients in this study, these critical links were compromised or lost. This widespread breakdown was accompanied by a silencing effect: Many transposable elements that are normally active became significantly less so in patients. The genes most closely connected to these elements were those involved in immune function, consistent with a role for immune processes in schizophrenia.