1H MRSI evidence of metabolic abnormalities in childhood-onset schizophrenia

Abstract

In adult schizophrenia, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 14 magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) have revealed volumetric 15 and metabolic defects in multiple brain regions, among them the 16 anterior cingulate, frontal cortex, striatum, thalamus, parietal cortex, 17 and frontal and parietal white matter. This study used proton magnetic 18 resonance spectroscopic imaging (s 1 H MRSI) to identify potential 19 metabolic abnormalities in these regions in childhood-onset schizo-20 phrenia.1 H MRSI was acquired at 1.5 T and 272 ms echo time in 11 21 children and adolescents with schizophrenia (aged 7 -18 years; seven 22 boys, four girls; all but two medicated) and 20 age-matched healthy 23 controls (10 boys, 10 girls). Absolute levels of N-acetyl compounds 24 (NAA), creatine plus phosphocreatine (Cr), and choline compounds 25 (Cho) were compared among groups in each region. In schizophrenic 26 patients relative to controls, Cr was 14.3% higher in superior anterior 27 cingulate (mean of left and right hemispheres). Cho was higher in 28 superior anterior cingulate (30.3%), frontal cortex (13.3%), and 29 caudate head (13.5%). In the thalamus, there was also a diagnosis-30 by-gender interaction, whereby NAA was lower in patients for male but 31 not for female subjects. Elevated Cr suggests abnormal local cell-32 energy demand and elevated Cho is consistent with a prior proposal 33 that patients with early age-of-onset schizophrenia exhibit phospholipid 34 membrane disturbances. Low NAA may reflect diminished neuronal 35 integrity. 36 D

Higher Levels of Glutamate in the Associative-Striatum of Subjects with Prodromal Symptoms of Schizophrenia and Patients with First-Episode Psychosis

“…Our results in elevated choline containing compounds (GPC + PCh) found in the dorsal caudate of FEP patients agrees with previous reports in patients with schizophrenia (Bustillo et al, 2002;Lutkenhoff et al, 2010), and in childhood-onset schizophrenia (O'Neill et al, 2004). Three previous reports have failed to find differences in choline in the cerebellum of patients with schizophrenia (Eluri et al, 1998;Tibbo et al, 2000;Bustillo et al, 2008).…”

Magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy in a mouse model of schizophrenia

“…The Cho/NAA ratio ranged from 0.618 ± 0.027 to 1.140 ± 0.120 whereas the Cr/NAA ratio ranged from 0.759 ± 0.094 to 0.925 ± 0.082. These ranges are in agreement with those previously reported by other 1 H-MRS studies (Lindquist et al, 2000;Mathew et al, 2003;O'Neill et al, 2004). The Cho/NAA ratio was significantly different (P ≤ 0.05) between homozygous ckr mice and wild-type cohorts.…”

Structural and functional abnormalities in the caudate nucleus of schizophrenic patients with and without obsessive symptoms

“…The increase in the choline to NAA ratio in patients with or without OCS in comparison with controls is in agreement with different studies [13,37,39].…”