Abstract
BackgroundThis study was to examine the insular cortical functional connectivity in drug naïve patients with first episode schizophrenia and to explore the relationship between the connectivity and the severity of clinical symptoms.MethodsThirty-seven drug naïve patients with schizophrenia and 25 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. A seed-based approach was used to analyze the resting-state functional imaging data. Insular cortical connectivity maps were bilaterally extracted for group comparison and validated by voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis. Clinical symptoms were measured using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS).ResultsThere were significant reductions in the right insular cortical connectivity with the Heschl’s gyrus, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and caudate (p’s<0.001) in the patient group compared with the healthy control (HC) group. Reduced right insular cortical connectivity with the Heschl’s gyrus was further confirmed in the VBM analysis (FDR corrected p<0.05). Within the patient group, there was a significant positive relationship between the right insula-Heschl’s connectivity and PANSS general psychopathology scores (r = 0.384, p = 0.019).ConclusionReduced insula-Heschl’s functional connectivity is present in drug naïve patients with first episode schizophrenia, which might be related to the manifestation of clinical symptoms.
Highlights
Schizophrenia, a severe psychiatric disorder characterized by positive and negative symptoms and cognitive deficits[1], has long been hypothesized as a disorder of brain connectivity [2]
There were significant reductions in the right insular cortical connectivity with the Heschl’s gyrus, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and caudate (p’s
Reduced insula-Heschl’s functional connectivity is present in drug naïve patients with first episode schizophrenia, which might be related to the manifestation of clinical symptoms
Summary
Schizophrenia, a severe psychiatric disorder characterized by positive and negative symptoms and cognitive deficits[1], has long been hypothesized as a disorder of brain connectivity [2]. Secluded deep within the lateral sulcus of the human brain, the insular cortex is part of an extended network of neuronal pathways connecting to the anterior cingulate cortex, temporal lobe, parietal lobe, hippocampus, amygdala, olfactory cortex, and thalamus[6]. The insular cortex plays an important role in emotion processing including interoceptive awareness, anticipation, evaluation of emotional stimuli, self-awareness[7], episodic memory[8], executive function [9], attention[10], and saliency processing[11]. This study was to examine the insular cortical functional connectivity in drug naïve patients with first episode schizophrenia and to explore the relationship between the connectivity and the severity of clinical symptoms
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call