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Sefik E, Boamah M, Addington J, Bearden CE, Cadenhead KS, Cornblatt BA, Keshavan MS, Mathalon DH, Perkins DO, Stone WS, Tsuang MT, Woods SW, Cannon TD, Walker EF. Sex- and Age-Specific Deviations in Cerebellar Structure and Their Link With Symptom Dimensions and Clinical Outcome in Individuals at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis. Schizophr Bull 2023; 49:350-363. [PMID: 36394426 PMCID: PMC10016422 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbac169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The clinical high-risk (CHR) period offers a temporal window into neurobiological deviations preceding psychosis onset, but little attention has been given to regions outside the cerebrum in large-scale studies of CHR. Recently, the North American Prodrome Longitudinal Study (NAPLS)-2 revealed altered functional connectivity of the cerebello-thalamo-cortical circuitry among individuals at CHR; however, cerebellar morphology remains underinvestigated in this at-risk population, despite growing evidence of its involvement in psychosis. STUDY DESIGN In this multisite study, we analyzed T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging scans obtained from N = 469 CHR individuals (61% male, ages = 12-36 years) and N = 212 healthy controls (52% male, ages = 12-34 years) from NAPLS-2, with a focus on cerebellar cortex and white matter volumes separately. Symptoms were rated by the Structured Interview for Psychosis-Risk Syndromes (SIPS). The outcome by two-year follow-up was categorized as in-remission, symptomatic, prodromal-progression, or psychotic. General linear models were used for case-control comparisons and tests for volumetric associations with baseline SIPS ratings and clinical outcomes. STUDY RESULTS Cerebellar cortex and white matter volumes differed between the CHR and healthy control groups at baseline, with sex moderating the difference in cortical volumes, and both sex and age moderating the difference in white matter volumes. Baseline ratings for major psychosis-risk dimensions as well as a clinical outcome at follow-up had tissue-specific associations with cerebellar volumes. CONCLUSIONS These findings point to clinically relevant deviations in cerebellar cortex and white matter structures among CHR individuals and highlight the importance of considering the complex interplay between sex and age when studying the neuromaturational substrates of psychosis risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esra Sefik
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Michelle Boamah
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jean Addington
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Carrie E Bearden
- Department of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Kristin S Cadenhead
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | | | - Matcheri S Keshavan
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daniel H Mathalon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Mental Health Service, San Francisco VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Diana O Perkins
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - William S Stone
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ming T Tsuang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Scott W Woods
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Tyrone D Cannon
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Elaine F Walker
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
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Holtzman CW, Trotman HD, Goulding SM, Ryan AT, Macdonald AN, Shapiro DI, Brasfield JL, Walker EF. Stress and neurodevelopmental processes in the emergence of psychosis. Neuroscience 2013; 249:172-91. [PMID: 23298853 PMCID: PMC4140178 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.12.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 167] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2012] [Revised: 11/24/2012] [Accepted: 12/02/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The notion that stress plays a role in the etiology of psychotic disorders, especially schizophrenia, is longstanding. However, it is only in recent years that the potential neural mechanisms mediating this effect have come into sharper focus. The introduction of more sophisticated models of the interplay between psychosocial factors and brain function has expanded our opportunities for conceptualizing more detailed psychobiological models of stress in psychosis. Further, scientific advances in our understanding of adolescent brain development have shed light on a pivotal question that has challenged researchers; namely, why the first episode of psychosis typically occurs in late adolescence/young adulthood. In this paper, we begin by reviewing the evidence supporting associations between psychosocial stress and psychosis in diagnosed patients as well as individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis. We then discuss biological stress systems and examine changes that precede and follow psychosis onset. Next, research findings on structural and functional brain characteristics associated with psychosis are presented; these findings suggest that normal adolescent neuromaturational processes may go awry, thereby setting the stage for the emergence of psychotic syndromes. Finally, a model of neural mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of psychosis is presented and directions for future research strategies are explored.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. W. Holtzman
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - H. D. Trotman
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - S. M. Goulding
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - A. T. Ryan
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - A. N. Macdonald
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - D. I. Shapiro
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - J. L. Brasfield
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
| | - E. F. Walker
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States
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