Association between the Thalamus and Social Function in Schizophrenia

Abstract

Patients with schizophrenia face several difficulties in their daily social life owing to the impairment of social cognitive ability. However, the neural basis of this impairment has not been fully clarified. We attempted to identify the neuronal basis of social dysfunction of schizophrenia by focusing on the thalamus, which is a subcortical structure. We have shown that right thalamic volume, as well as white matter integrity between the right thalamus and right frontal lobe, is associated with the social function of patients with schizophrenia, by using T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data. These findings suggested that neural network abnormalities between the thalamus and the frontal lobe can be related to social dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia. Thus, these findings may contribute to the development of new treatments for schizophrenia.