Elsevier

Biological Psychiatry

Volume 55, Issue 1, 1 January 2004, Pages 77-84
Biological Psychiatry

Original article
Differences between smokers and nonsmokers in regional gray matter volumes and densities

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0006-3223(03)00610-3Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have demonstrated large-scale brain abnormalities in cigarette smokers, such as ventricular enlargement and atrophy. Converging lines of evidence point to functional differences between smokers and nonsmokers in specific brain regions, namely the lateral prefrontal cortex (PFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), ventral striatum, and thalamus. Using MRI, we examined these regions for differences in gray matter between smokers and nonsmokers.

Methods

Thirty-six otherwise healthy adults (19 smokers and 17 nonsmoking control subjects) underwent three-dimensional Fourier-transform spoiled-gradient-recalled acquisition MRI of the brain. Both hand-drawn regions of interest and the computer program voxel-based morphometry were used to assess group differences in regional gray matter volumes and densities, respectively.

Results

Smokers had smaller gray matter volumes and lower gray matter densities than nonsmokers in the PFC bilaterally, along with smaller volumes in the left dorsal ACC and lower gray matter densities in the right cerebellum. Smokers also had negative associations between pack-year smoking history and PFC gray matter densities.

Conclusions

Smokers and nonsmokers differed in regional gray matter in brain areas previously linked with nicotine dependence. These findings might reflect effects of chronic smoking, predisposing traits that lead to smoking, or some combination of these factors.

Section snippets

Subjects

Thirty-six subjects (19 smokers and 17 nonsmoking control subjects), 21–65 years of age, were recruited through local newspaper advertisements. They were initially screened during a semistructured telephone interview to assess smoking, medical, psychiatric, medication, and substance use history. Smokers were defined as those who smoked at least 20 cigarettes per day and met DSM-IV criteria for nicotine dependence. Nonsmoking history was defined as having smoked no more than five cigarettes in a

Results

The smoker and nonsmoker groups were similar in age (mean 39.5 ± 10.3 vs. 37.9 ± 12.9 years, respectively), gender (42.1% vs. 41.2% female), ethnicity (74% vs. 64% Caucasian), handedness (0% vs. 6% left-handed), and HAM-D (mean 2.0 ± 2.7 vs. 1.2 ± 1.7) and HAM-A (2.4 ± 2.3 vs. 1.6 ± 1.8) scores. Smokers had higher exhaled carbon monoxide levels (18.3 ± 7.1 vs. 1.9 ± .7 parts per million (ppm), Student t test, p = 7.1 × 10−9), and FTND scores (5.1 ± 1.9 vs. 0 ± 0, Student t test, p = 6.5 × 10−13

Discussion

In this study, smokers had smaller relative cortical gray matter volumes and lower gray matter densities than nonsmokers in the prefrontal cortices (DLPFC and VLPFC). Smokers also had smaller left dorsal ACC volumes and lower right cerebellar gray matter densities than nonsmokers. No regions were significantly larger or had significantly higher gray matter densities in smokers compared with nonsmokers. The smoker group also had an association between greater pack-year smoking history and lower

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by a Veterans Affairs Type I Merit Review Award (ALB), the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (ALB [7KT-0098 and 11RT-0024] and EDL [10RT-0091]), and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (ALB [R01 DA15059] and EDL [RO1 DA14093]).

We thank Sanjaya Saxena and Richard Traystman for suggestions regarding the manuscript, and Michael Clark for technical assistance in performing magnetic resonance imaging scans. This was presented in part at the American College of

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