Abnormal dynamic functional network connectivity of the mirror neuron system network and the mentalizing network in patients with adolescent-onset, first-episode, drug-naïve schizophrenia

Abstract

Previous studies based on an assumption of connectivity stationarity reported disconnections in mirror neuron system (MNS) and mentalizing networks of schizophrenic brains with social cognitive disruptions. However, recent studies demonstrated that functional brain connections are dynamic, and static connectivity metrics fail to capture time-varying properties of functional connections. The present study used a dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) method to test whether alterations of functional connectivity in the two networks are time-varying in adolescent-onset schizophrenia (AOS) patients. We collected resting-state fMRI data from 28 patients with AOS and 22 matched healthy controls. Static functional connectivity and dFC were used to explore the connectivity difference in the MNS and mentalizing networks between the two groups, respectively. Then a Pearson’s correlation analysis between the connectivity showing intergroup differences and clinical scores was conducted in the AOS group. Compared with static functional connectivity analyses, dFC revealed state-specific connectivity decreases within the MNS network in the AOS group. Additionally, the dFC between the left middle temporal gyrus and left V5 was negatively correlated with the item2 of PANSS negative scores across all the AOS patients. Our findings suggest that social dysfunctions in AOS patients may be associated with the altered integrity and interaction of the MNS and mentalizing networks, and the functional impairments in the MNS are dynamic over time.