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Abnormal cortico-limbic connectivity during emotional processing correlates with symptom severity in schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

B. Vai ,
G. Sferrazza Papa ,
S. Poletti ,
D. Radaelli ,
E. Donnici ,
I. Bollettini ,
A. Falini ,
R. Cavallaro ,
E. Smeraldi  and
F. Benedetti
B. Vai*
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy PhD in Evolutionary Psychopathology, Libera Università Maria Ss. Assunta, Roma, Italy
G. Sferrazza Papa
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
S. Poletti
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
D. Radaelli
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
E. Donnici
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
I. Bollettini
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy PhD program in Philosophy and Sciences of Mind, University Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
A. Falini
Affiliation:
Department of Neuroradiology, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
R. Cavallaro
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
E. Smeraldi
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
F. Benedetti
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Scientific Institute Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan, Italy CERMAC (Centro di Eccellenza Risonanza Magnetica ad Alto Campo), Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milano, Italy
*
⁎Corresponding author. Istituto Scientifico Ospedale San Raffaele, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, San Raffaele Turro, Via Stamira d'Ancona 20, Milano, Italy. Tel.: +39 02 26433156; fax: +39 02 26433265. E-mail address:b.vai@hotmail.it (B. Vai).
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Abstract

Background

Impaired emotional processing is a core feature of schizophrenia (SZ). Consistent findings suggested that abnormal emotional processing in SZ could be paralleled by a disrupted functional and structural integrity within the fronto-limbic circuitry. The effective connectivity of emotional circuitry in SZ has never been explored in terms of causal relationship between brain regions. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and Dynamic Causal Modeling (DCM) to characterize effective connectivity during implicit processing of affective stimuli in SZ.

Methods

We performed DCM to model connectivity between amygdala (Amy), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), ventral prefrontal cortex (VPFC), fusiform gyrus (FG) and visual cortex (VC) in 25 patients with SZ and 29 HC. Bayesian Model Selection and average were performed to determine the optimal structural model and its parameters.

Results

Analyses revealed that patients with SZ are characterized by a significant reduced top-down endogenous connectivity from DLPFC to Amy, an increased connectivity from Amy to VPFC and a decreased driving input to Amy of affective stimuli compared to HC. Furthermore, DLPFC to Amy connection in patients significantly influenced the severity of psychopathology as rated on Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale.

Conclusions

Results suggest a functional disconnection in brain network that contributes to the symptomatic outcome of the disorder. Our findings support the study of effective connectivity within cortico-limbic structures as a marker of severity and treatment efficacy in SZ.

Keywords

Dynamic causal modelingBOLD fMRISchizophreniaEmotion
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 30 , Issue 5 , July 2015 , pp. 590 - 597
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier Masson SAS 2015

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