Superior Temporal Gyrus Volume Research Articles

The Kraepelinian Dichotomy: Evidence From Developmental and Neuroimaging Studies

The Kraepelinian Dichotomy: Evidence From Developmental and Neuroimaging Studies

Hippocampal and Superior Temporal Gyrus Volume in First-Episode Schizophrenia

Hippocampal and Superior Temporal Gyrus Volume in First-Episode Schizophrenia

Superior temporal gyrus in schizophrenia: a volumetric magnetic resonance imaging study

The left superior temporal gyrus (STG) has been reported to be smaller in patients with schizophrenia. The volume of the STG has been found to correlate negatively with severity of hallucinations and thought disorder. In this study, we measured the STG volume of 20 normal controls and 20 patients with schizophrenia using 3 mm contiguous coronal T1 magnetic resonance images. We found that patients had a significantly smaller left anterior STG, and that the volume of this region negatively correlated with the severity of hallucinations. The left posterior STG was not significantly smaller in patients than in controls, but its volume negatively correlated with severity of thought disorder. We also found that the left anterior STG was smaller than the right STG in patients but not in controls. The STG has at least three histologically distinct areas, each with different connections to the rest of the brain. These data are consistent with the proposition that dysfunction of the primary auditory cortex in the anterior and middle STG and auditory association cortex in the posterior STG may play a role in the production of auditory perceptual abnormalities and poor organization of thought respectively.

Superior temporal gyrus volume abnormalities and thought disorder in left-handed schizophrenic men.

Studies of schizophrenia have not clearly defined handedness as a differentiating variable. Moreover, the relationship between thought disorder and anatomical anomalies has not been studied extensively in left-handed schizophrenic men. The twofold purpose of this study was to investigate gray matter volumes in the superior temporal gyrus of the temporal lobe (left and right hemispheres) in left-handed schizophrenic men and left-handed comparison men, in order to determine whether thought disorder in the left-handed schizophrenic men correlated with tissue volume abnormalities. Left-handed male patients (N = 8) with DSM-III-R diagnoses of schizophrenia were compared with left-handed comparison men (N = 10) matched for age, socioeconomic status, and IQ. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with a 1.5-T magnet was used to obtain scans, which consisted of contiguous 1.5-mm slices of the whole brain. MRI analyses (as previously defined by the authors) included the anterior, posterior, and total superior temporal gyrus in both the left and right hemispheres. There were three significant findings regarding the left-handed schizophrenic men: 1) bilaterally smaller gray matter volumes in the posterior superior temporal gyrus (16% smaller on the right, 15% smaller on the left); 2) a smaller volume on the right side of the total superior temporal gyrus; and 3) a positive correlation between thought disorder and tissue volume in the right anterior superior temporal gyrus. These results suggest that expression of brain pathology differs between left-handed and right-handed schizophrenic men and that the pathology is related to cognitive disturbance.

Superior temporal gyral volumes and laterality correlates of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia

Background: Previous studies have reported significant correlations, indicating an emerging relationship, between severity of auditory hallucinations and reduced size of temporal lobe cortical regions implicated in language processing. The present study used high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning, along with assessment of functional lateralization via a dichotic listening task (DLT), to extend these findings. Methods: Thirty patients with schizophrenia and a history of auditory hallucinations participated in the study. All were completely right-handed. Eleven subjects were currently hallucinating at the time of the study. Volumetric T1-weighted MRI scans were obtained and regions of interest were manually traced using the BRAINS package (Andreasen et al 1993). Whole brain, bilateral temporal lobe, and anterior superior temporal gyrus volumes were calculated. Subjects completed a binaural consonant–vowel DLT. Results: Increased severity of hallucinatory experience was significantly associated with smaller left anterior superior temporal gyrus volumes. Current hallucinators demonstrated a reduction in right ear advantage on the DLT. Conclusions: The results suggest that auditory hallucinations are subserved by a trait-like dysfunction in language-related neural networks, of which the superior temporal cortex forms one component. The findings are also consistent with theories proposing abnormal lateralization in the etiology of auditory hallucinations.

Schizotypal personality disorder and MRI abnormalities of temporal lobe gray matter

Background: Structural MRI data indicate schizophrenics have reduced left-sided temporal lobe gray matter volumes, especially in the superior temporal gyrus (STG) and medial temporal lobe. Our data further suggest a specificity to schizophrenia spectrum disorders of STG volume reduction. Interpretation of research studies involving schizophrenics may be complicated by the effects of exposure to neuroleptics and chronic illness. Sharing the same genetic diathesis of schizophrenics, subjects with schizotypal personality disorder (SPD) offer a unique opportunity to evaluate commonalities between schizophrenia and SPD, particularly as SPD subjects are characterized by cognitive and perceptual distortions, an inability to tolerate close friendships, and odd behavior, but they are not psychotic and so have generally not been prescribed neuroleptics nor hospitalized. Evaluation of brain structure in SPD may thus offer insight into the “endophenotype” common to both disorders. In addition, differences between groups may suggest which are the brain structures of schizophrenics that contribute to the development of psychosis. Methods: To test the hypothesis of whether SPD subjects might show similar STG abnormalities, STG and medial temporal lobe regions of interest (ROI) were manually drawn on high resolution coronal MRI 1.5 mm thick slices. Images were derived from 16 right-handed male SPD subjects, without regard to family history, and 14 healthy, right-handed, comparison males who did not differ from the SPD group on parental socio-economic status, age, or verbal IQ. Results: As predicted, SPD subjects showed a reduction in left STG gray matter volume compared with age and gender matched comparison subjects. SPD subjects also showed reduced parahippocampal left/right asymmetry and a high degree of disordered thinking. Comparisons with chronic schizophrenics previously studied by us showed the SPD group had a similarity of left STG gray matter volume reduction, but fewer medial temporal lobe abnormalities. Conclusions: These abnormalities strengthen the hypothesis of a temporal lobe abnormality in SPD, and the similarity of STG findings in schizophrenia and SPD suggest that STG abnormalities may be part of the spectrum “endophenotype.” It is also possible that presence of medial temporal lobe abnormalities may help to differentiate who will develop schizophrenia and who will develop the less severe schizophrenia spectrum disorder, SPD.

Superior temporal gyrus and the course of early schizophrenia: Progressive, static, or reversible?

Accumulating evidence suggests alterations in brain structure, especially in the prefrontal and temporal cortex, in schizophrenia. Previous studies examining the progression of brain structural alterations in schizophrenia have led to conflicting results. Morphometric studies of the superior temporal gyrus (STG) volumes were conducted in a series of neuroleptic-naive first-episode schizophrenic patients, non-schizophrenic first-episode psychotic patients, and matched healthy controls. Three-dimensional MRI scans were carried out in these subjects before and after one year of treatment. Volume reductions were seen at baseline in the left superior temporal gyrus (adjusted for intracranial volume) in both of the patient groups. Pretreatment illness duration was inversely related to the volume of the left superior temporal gyrus; this relation was confined to males. One-year follow-up MRI investigations in a smaller subset of patients suggested that the STG volume reductions may be reversible. No significant changes were noted in the STG volumes in matched healthy controls who were also scanned at baseline as well as at one-year follow-up. These findings have implications for understanding the nature of the neuropathological processes in early schizophrenia, as well as the potential impact of early treatment.

Compartmental volumetry of the superior temporal gyrus reveals sex differences in schizophrenia—a post-mortem study

Brain imaging studies have shown superior temporal gyrus (STG) volume loss and abnormal patterns of asymmetry in schizophrenia; however, these are not consistent findings. Post-mortem volumetry of three different STG regions (defined by external landmarks) was used to compare 17 schizophrenics to 20 age- and sex-matched controls. Total STG volumes did not differ. A significant gray-matter volume reduction in schizophrenics was observed in the middle compartment (reaching from the mamillary body to the lateral geniculate body). This may have been related to reduced length of this region, particularly in schizophrenic females. These results reflect the problematic issue of defining boundaries of macroscopic brain structures.

Superior temporal gyral volumes and laterality correlates of auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia

Abstract Background: Previous studies have reported significant correlations, indicating an emerging relationship, between severity of auditory hallucinations and reduced size of temporal lobe cortical regions implicated in language processing. The present study used high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning, along with assessment of functional lateralization via a dichotic listening task (DLT), to extend these findings. Methods: Thirty patients with schizophrenia and a history of auditory hallucinations participated in the study. All were completely right-handed. Eleven subjects were currently hallucinating at the time of the study. Volumetric T1-weighted MRI scans were obtained and regions of interest were manually traced using the BRAINS package (Andreasen et al 1993) . Whole brain, bilateral temporal lobe, and anterior superior temporal gyrus volumes were calculated. Subjects completed a binaural consonant–vowel DLT. Results: Increased severity of hallucinatory experience was significantly associated with smaller left anterior superior temporal gyrus volumes. Current hallucinators demonstrated a reduction in right ear advantage on the DLT. Conclusions: The results suggest that auditory hallucinations are subserved by a trait-like dysfunction in language-related neural networks, of which the superior temporal cortex forms one component. The findings are also consistent with theories proposing abnormal lateralization in the etiology of auditory hallucinations.

Structural magnetic resonance imaging abnormalities in men with severe chronic schizophrenia and an early age at clinical onset.

Early age at onset of schizophrenia often signifies a more severe form of the illness. However, the relationship between age at onset and brain abnormalities has not been established. We assessed temporal-limbic morphometry in severely ill men with chronic schizophrenia who had a relatively early onset of illness and examined the relationships among regional brain volumes, clinical symptoms, and age at illness onset. Temporal lobe, superior temporal gyrus, hippocampus, temporal horn, lateral ventricles, third ventricle, and frontoparietal volumes were measured on magnetic resonance imaging data from 56 schizophrenic men (mean [SD] age at illness onset, 16.6 [4.2] years) recruited from a state hospital and 52 age- and range-matched healthy control men. Patients had significantly smaller gray matter volumes in the temporal lobe, superior temporal gyrus, and frontoparietal regions; smaller temporal lobe white matter volumes; and larger cerebrospinal fluid volumes for temporal lobe sulci and the 3 ventricular measures. There were no group differences in hippocampal volumes. Psychotic symptom subscores from the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale were selectively correlated with smaller left posterior superior temporal gyrus gray matter volumes. None of the brain measurements were significantly correlated with age at illness onset. Data from this unique sample of severely ill schizophrenic men emphasize a pattern of structural abnormalities involving the cortex, but not the hippocampus, in schizophrenia. Furthermore, these data support theories suggesting that superior temporal gyrus abnormalities contribute selectively to psychotic symptoms and that the extent of structural abnormalities is unrelated to age of clinical symptom onset.

Small planum temporale volume in Down's syndrome: a volumetric MRI study.

Down's syndrome is associated with structural brain abnormalities and language deficits. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the superior temporal gyrus and the planum temporale, both parts of the anatomic substrate for language, are abnormal in Down's syndrome. The authors examined volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures of the superior temporal gyrus and the planum temporale for 17 community-dwelling patients with Down's syndrome and 17 matched healthy comparison subjects. For the subjects with Down's syndrome, the correlations of the superior temporal gyrus and planum temporale volumes with performance on tests of language function were examined. The planum temporale volume of the patients with Down's syndrome was smaller than that of the healthy subjects, even after differences in whole brain volume were controlled for. The volume of the superior temporal gyrus in the Down's syndrome patients was proportionally similar to that of the comparison group. For the subjects with Down's syndrome, neither superior temporal gyrus nor planum temporale volume was significantly correlated with performance on language tests after total brain volume was controlled for. In Down's syndrome, planum temporale volume may be selectively smaller than normal, although the effect of this volume deficit on language is not clear.

Superior temporal gyrus volume in schizophrenia: a study using MRI morphometry assisted by surface rendering

Superior temporal gyrus volume in schizophrenia: a study using MRI morphometry assisted by surface rendering

Superior temporal gyrus volume and asymmetry in first-episode schizophrenia

Superior temporal gyrus volume and asymmetry in first-episode schizophrenia

Language and thought disorder in schizophrenia: brain morphological correlates

In this magnetic resonance imaging study, the authors analyzed the relationships between frontal and temporal lobe volumes, volumes of ventricular system subdivisions and clinical and neuropsychological aspects of language and thought disorder in a group of 19 young schizophrenic patients. Schizophrenics showed enlargement of lateral ventricles, especially of the central and occipital segments compared with 15 age and sex matched healthy controls but no differences were present in prefrontal, temporal lobe and superior temporal gyrus volumes. Prefrontal volume was inversely correlated with Thought, Language and Communication (TLC) scale total scores; left superior temporal gyral (STG) volume was positively correlated with verbal fluency test performance; higher total ventricular volume was significantly correlated with poor performance to a sentence generation test; STG laterality index was correlated with global TLC scores, the more severe the thought and language disorders, the relatively smaller the left and larger the right STG. These results suggest a complex neuroanatomical substrate for thought and language disorders in schizophrenia.

Magnetic resonance imaging volumetric measurements of the superior temporal gyrus, hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, frontal and temporal lobes in late paraphrenia.

Quantified magnetic resonance measurements were made of superior temporal gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus, hippocampal, frontal and temporal lobe volumes and of the planar area of the thalamus and basal ganglia structures in 47 late paraphrenic patients and 33 healthy elderly controls. The late paraphrenics were divided into 31 schizophrenics and 16 patients with delusional disorder according to ICD-10 guidelines. Patients with delusional disorder tended to have smaller left temporal volumes compared with control subjects and patients with schizophrenia, but this difference failed to reach accepted levels of statistical significance after correction for the effects of multiple statistical comparisons, age and total brain size. Physiological right-left asymmetry, reported for temporal and frontal lobe volumes, was present in control, schizophrenic and delusional disorder subjects but delusional disorder patients had a significantly greater degree of temporal lobe asymmetry. The results add to the evidence for heterogeneity among late-onset psychoses and emphasize the subtle nature of any structural brain abnormalities in these patients.

Asymmetries in the superior temporal lobe in male and female first-episode schizophrenic patients: measures of the planum temporale and superior temporal gyrus by MRI

Schizophrenia has been hypothesized to be associated with an underlying brain developmental anomaly, specifically affecting normal brain asymmetries. The most pronounced asymmetries are present on the superior surface of the temporal lobes, the left plane, as measured along the sylvian fissure (planum temporale) being longer than the right in the majority of normal individuals. These asymmetries encompass Wernicke's area, the anatomical substrate for language, and have been found to be less pronounced in individuals with developmental language problems, i.e. dyslexia. Since disordered language is one of the hallmarks of schizophrenia, the present study focuses on the planum temporale and related superior temporal gyrus. Eighty-five first-episode schizophrenic patients and 40 controls had measurements of the sylvian fissure taken from coronal slices. The pattern of asymmetry in controls was for the right length to be longer than the left in anterior slices, and for left to be longer than right in posterior slices (corresponding to the planum temporale). Schizophrenic patients as a group demonstrated less asymmetry (R>L) in anterior slices, and female patients showed a trend for less (L>R) asymmetry in posterior slices. In contrast to the report of Barta et al. (1990), the volume of the anterior superior temporal gyrus did not differ from controls in first-episode schizophrenic patients. Neither the presence of formal thought disorder nor auditory hallucinations defined a subgroup of patients with reduced size or lateralization of the planum temporal or superior temporal gyrus.

The auditory N2 component in schizophrenia: Relationship to MRI temporal lobe gray matter and to other ERP abnormalities

The N2 component of the auditory event-related potential (ERP) indexes cognitive processes involved in the categorization of deviant stimuli. Although N2 amplitude and latency abnormalities have been reported in schizophrenia, their relationship to MRI structural changes, clinical status, and P3 abnormalities has not been defined. We therefore studied the auditory N2 and P3 components elicited by an oddball paradigm in 15 right-handed male subjects with schizophrenia and 14 control subjects who had quantitative MRI measures of temporal lobe gray-matter structures. To provide a methodological comparison, we measured the auditory N2 from both the target ERP (N2t) and the target-minus-frequent ERP difference (N2d) waveforms. Both N2t and N2d amplitude were bilaterally reduced in schizophrenics, with N2d showing a more pronounced reduction. Within the schizophrenic group, N2 amplitude reduction was associated with reduction in gray-matter volume of the left superior temporal gyrus (STG) and of medial temporal lobe structures bilaterally, and clinically, with greater chronicity, P3 amplitude, in contrast, correlated only with left posterior STG volume, and was more prominently associated with delusions and thought disorder. These findings suggest that the N2 and P3 components, though occurring sequentially in the ERP, tap separable anatomic and behavioral abnormalities in schizophrenia.

The relationship of pet D2 dopamine receptor findings to superior temporal gyral volume estimates in 14 schizophrenic subjects

Accumulating evidence suggests alterations in brain structure, especially in the prefrontal and temporal cortex, in schizophrenia. Previous studies examining the progression of brain structural alterations in schizophrenia have led to conflicting results. Morphometric studies of the superior temporal gyrus (STG) volumes were conducted in a series of neuroleptic-naive first-episode schizophrenic patients, non-schizophrenic first-episode psychotic patients, and matched healthy controls. Three-dimensional MRI scans were carried out in these subjects before and after one year of treatment. Volume reductions were seen at baseline in the left superior temporal gyrus (adjusted for intracranial volume) in both of the patient groups. Pretreatment illness duration was inversely related to the volume of the left superior temporal gyrus; this relation was confined to males. One-year follow-up MRI investigations in a smaller subset of patients suggested that the STG volume reductions may be reversible. No significant changes were noted in the STG volumes in matched healthy controls who were also scanned at baseline as well as at one-year follow-up. These findings have implications for understanding the nature of the neuropathological processes in early schizophrenia, as well as the potential impact of early treatment.

The effect of cognitive challenge on regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in schizophrenia

Accumulating evidence suggests alterations in brain structure, especially in the prefrontal and temporal cortex, in schizophrenia. Previous studies examining the progression of brain structural alterations in schizophrenia have led to conflicting results. Morphometric studies of the superior temporal gyrus (STG) volumes were conducted in a series of neuroleptic-naive first-episode schizophrenic patients, non-schizophrenic first-episode psychotic patients, and matched healthy controls. Three-dimensional MRI scans were carried out in these subjects before and after one year of treatment. Volume reductions were seen at baseline in the left superior temporal gyrus (adjusted for intracranial volume) in both of the patient groups. Pretreatment illness duration was inversely related to the volume of the left superior temporal gyrus; this relation was confined to males. One-year follow-up MRI investigations in a smaller subset of patients suggested that the STG volume reductions may be reversible. No significant changes were noted in the STG volumes in matched healthy controls who were also scanned at baseline as well as at one-year follow-up. These findings have implications for understanding the nature of the neuropathological processes in early schizophrenia, as well as the potential impact of early treatment.

Auditory P300 Abnormalities and Left Posterior Superior Temporal Gyrus Volume Reduction in Schizophrenia

Abnormalities in the auditory P300 event-related potential are one of the most robust findings in schizophrenia. To investigate the brain source(s) of this major functional abnormality, we combined P300 recordings with the use of a new generation of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology to examine specific temporal lobe gray matter regions of interest in schizophrenics and normal controls. In schizophrenics, gray matter volume reductions in the left posterior superior temporal gyrus (STG), which includes Heschl's gyrus and the planum temporale, were highly and specifically associated with both P300 amplitude reduction and left < right topographic asymmetry. In contrast, left hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus gray matter volume reductions, although present in schizophrenics, were not associated with any P300 abnormalities. There were also no statistically significant correlations between P300 amplitude at any of the central or left-sided electrode sites or any of the MRI-defined volumes of gray matter regions of interest in the right temporal lobe, superior frontal gyrus, or cingulate gyrus; additional work will thus be required to determine the role of these regions, if any, in P300 generation, along with the role of other brain areas not examined in the present study. These initial data appear most compatible with a model that postulates a major role for bilateral STG sources in P300 generation: The strongly asymmetric STG volume reduction (left < < right STG volume) found in many schizophrenic subjects produces asymmetric P300 amplitudes (left < < right) at lateral electrode sites, where the influence of the abnormal region is most easily detected.