Medical studies that shows that some Neurodevelopment disorders and brain morphology
performs into neurodevelopment of human brain morphology in health and
disease, and particularly into brain abnormalities in schizophrenia,
autism, ADHD, depression, and focal brain damage using magnetic resonance imaging.
Studies found some relation of Cerebral Gray Matter Volume to Age for Schizophrenia.
Comparing gray matter for age for the patients with schizophrenia and for
the healthy comparison subjects (after correction for sex and total intracranial volume).
Observed a diference between the
gray matter volume and expected (grand average) volume
on the basis of the normal gray matter volume by sex and intracranial volume.
Schizophrenia
Studies in 159 patients with schizophrenia revealed evidence for global and
focal (progressive) brain abnormalities in schizophrenia. (Hulshoff 2001).
Total brain is smaller (-2.2%),
cerebral gray matter smaller (-3.3%)
prefrontal gray matter also small (-4.4%), and
prefrontal white matter (-3.5%) volumes were smaller, and
lateral (27%) and third (30%) ventricle and peripheral CSF (11%) volumes were larger
Moreover, in this study, the smaller gray matter volume was more
pronounced in older patients with schizophrenia which may suggest
progressive loss of cerebral gray matter in schizophrenia patients.
Using voxel-based morphometry in the MRI scans of these subjects, gray
matter density was found decreased in distinct focal areas in the
brains of patients with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder
(Hulshoff Pol et al, Arch Gen Psychiatry 2002;
click to look at a movie).
Decreases in gray matter density were found in the left amygdala; left
hippocampus; right supramarginal gyrus; thalamus; (orbito) frontal,
(supeerior) temporal, occipitotemporal, precuneate, posterior
cingulate, and insular cortices bilaterally in the patients. Moreover,
in this study the decreased density in the left amygdala was more
pronounced in older patients with schizophrenia.
The
brain abnormalities in schizophrenia have been associated with an
increased genetic risk in schizophrenia. In a study in monozygotic and
dizygotic twins discordant for schizophrenia and healthy comparison
twins (Baare et al, Arch Gen Psychiatry 2001) smaller intracranial
volumes in the monozygotic patients and their cotwins suggested that
increased genetic risk to develop schizophrenia is related to reduced
brain growth early in life. Additional reduction in whole-brain volume
in the patients suggested that the manifestation of the disorder is
related to (neurodegenerative) processes that are most likely
non-genetic in origin. In a study in patients with schizophrenia, their
healthy non-twin same-sex siblings, and unrelated healthy comparison
subjects, siblings shared a decreased thalamus (Staal et al, Am J
Psychiatry 1998) and enlarged third ventricle volume with their
affected siblings (Staal et al, Am J Psychiatry, 2000), suggesting
these may be related to genetic defects that produced a susceptibility
to schizophrenia. Other abnormalities were found to be related to
particular environmental factors including famine (Hulshoff Pol et al,
Am J Psychiatry, 2000) and antipsychotic drug use (Scheepers et al, Am
J Psychiatry 2001; Scheepers et al, Neuropsychopharmacology).
Indications were found for a relation with symptomatology (Baare et al,
Biological Psychiatry 1999) and outcome (Staal et al, Am J Psychiatry
2001) of the disease.
From this work it can be concluded that some
of the brain abnormalities are progressive in schizophrenia possibly
reflecting an active disease process, part of which are genetically
mediated, although influence of environmental factors cannot be
excluded. Future studies will be performed into the onset and
progression of brain abnormalities in schizophrenia, autism and other
brain (developmental) disorders.
A significant group effect indicated that twins discordant for schizophrenia had
significantly smaller whole-brain volumes than healthy twins. Patients
as well as their cotwins had reduced whole-brain volumes. Moreover, patients had
significantly smaller brains than their cotwins
NeuroDevelopment -
The brain site 
Moreover, in this study, the smaller gray matter volume was more
pronounced in older patients with schizophrenia which may suggest
progressive loss of cerebral gray matter in schizophrenia patients.