The Neuropathology of White Matter in Schizophrenia

Abstract

Neuroimaging studies on patients with schizophrenia (SZ) provide evidence for widespread disruption of white matter (WM) integrity associated with cognitive disturbances, negative, and positive symptoms of SZ. Postmortem studies have shown that this disruption and disturbances of information processing in brain regions in SZ are a consequence of the pathology of oligodendrocytes, myelin producing cells, and myelinated fibers. Oligodendrocyte and myelin pathology might disturb intra- and inter-hemispheric axonal integrity and neuronal network in SZ patients. The corpus callosum is involved in dysfunctional connectivity in SZ. Recent in vivo and postmortem studies have also implicated the role of microglia activation and neuroinflammation in WM in SZ and in oligodendrocyte and myelin abnormalities in particular. Decreased density of astrocytes in the WM and increased density of interstitial WM neurons have been reported in SZ. WM changes in SZ might be of developmental origin and progress in the course of disease.