Altered intra- and inter-hemispheric functional dysconnectivity in schizophrenia

Yuan Zhang, Zhongxiang Dai, Yu Chen, Kang Sim, Yu Sun*, Rongjun Yu*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

13 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Despite convergent evidence suggesting that schizophrenia is a disorder of brain dysconnectivity, it remains unclear whether intra- or inter-hemispheric deficits or their combination underlie the dysconnection. This study examined the source of the functional dysconnection in schizophrenia. Resting-state fMRI was performed in 66 patients with schizophrenia and 73 matched healthy controls. Functional brain networks were constructed for each participant and further partitioned into intra- and inter-hemispheric connections. We examined how schizophrenia altered the intra-hemispheric topological properties and the inter-hemispheric nodal strength. Although several subcortical and cingulate regions exhibited hemispheric-independent aberrations of regional efficiency, the optimal small-world properties in the hemispheric networks and their lateralization were preserved in patients. A significant deficit in the inter-hemispheric connectivity was revealed in most of the hub regions, leading to an inter-hemispheric hypo-connectivity pattern in patients. These abnormal intra- and inter-hemispheric network organizations were associated with the clinical features of schizophrenia. The patients in the present study received different medications. These findings provide new insights into the nature of dysconnectivity in schizophrenia, highlighting the dissociable processes between the preserved intra-hemispheric network topology and altered inter-hemispheric functional connectivity.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1220-1235
Number of pages16
JournalBrain Imaging and Behavior
Volume13
Issue number5
Early online date9 Aug 2018
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2019

Scopus Subject Areas

  • Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology
  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
  • Psychiatry and Mental health
  • Behavioral Neuroscience

User-Defined Keywords

  • Graph theory
  • Hemispheric asymmetry
  • Inter-hemispheric connectivity
  • Resting-state functional connectivity
  • Schizophrenia

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Altered intra- and inter-hemispheric functional dysconnectivity in schizophrenia'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this