Chapter I.

Introduction

Statement of the Problem

At this point in human history mental illnesses are at an all-time high with many different

types of mental illnesses that potentially be deadly not in the conventional sense but in the

motivational sense. Unfortunately, the increased rate of suicide is the biggest reason why mental

illness is so fatal. More than 20% of adolescents have seriously thought of suicide. (American

Psychological Association) Mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia both

have many different biomarkers. Biomarkers are measurable objects that give information about

what is occurring in the cell at any given time. In lemians terms a biomarker is something that

can be measured and reveals what could be wrong in the cells by comparing the cells to healthy

cells. Claduin-5 is currently a possible biomarker for Bipolar disorder, Schizophrenia, ADHD,

and possibly more mental illnesses. However, we need more long-term data to confirm the

viability of claudin-5 as a biomarker.

One out of every two people develop some kind of mental illness in their lifetime.

(Havard Medical School) Mental illnesses can fluctuate from person to person yet they are

extremely common in recent times may that be due to genetic factors or environmental factors

the result is still the same. There are possible biomarkers that could give psychiatrists probable

cause to intervene with a patient who has biomarkers that could lead to mental illnesses.

Biomarkers are measurable substances in humans whose lack or heightened presence is

indicative of some type of disease, infection, or other illness.

Research Questions

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Hypotheses

Some possible hypothesis ideas:

Alternative 1: Former COVID-19 patients have an increased risk of developing

neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's.

Alternative 2: Aggregates of SARS-CoV-2 proteins may trigger neurological symptoms in

former COVID-19 patients.

Alternative 3: SARS-CoV-2 proteins can cause a serious disturbance in mental abilities,

increasing the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Null: There is no correlation between the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the development of
neuroinflammation.

Researcher’s Positionality

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