Dynamic aberrances of substantia nigra-relevant coactivation patterns in first-episode treatment-naïve patients with schizophrenia

BACKGROUND: Although dopaminergic disturbances are well-known in schizophrenia, the understanding of dopamine-related brain dynamics remains limited. This study investigates the dynamic coactivation patterns (CAPs) associated with the substantia nigra (SN), a key dopaminergic nucleus, in first-episode treatment-naïve patients with schizophrenia (FES).

METHODS: Resting-state fMRI data were collected from 84 FES and 94 healthy controls (HCs). Frame-wise clustering was implemented to generate CAPs related to SN activation or deactivation. Connectome features of each CAP were derived using an edge-centric method. The occurrence for each CAP and the balance ratio for antagonistic CAPs were calculated and compared between two groups, and correlations between temporal dynamic metrics and symptom burdens were explored.

RESULTS: Functional reconfigurations in CAPs exhibited significant differences between the activation and deactivation states of SN. During SN activation, FES more frequently recruited a CAP characterized by activated default network, language network, control network, and the caudate, compared to HCs (F = 8.54, FDR-p = 0.030). Moreover, FES displayed a tilted balance towards a CAP featuring SN-coactivation with the control network, caudate, and thalamus, as opposed to its antagonistic CAP (F = 7.48, FDR-p = 0.030). During SN deactivation, FES exhibited increased recruitment of a CAP with activated visual and dorsal attention networks but decreased recruitment of its opposing CAP (F = 6.58, FDR-p = 0.034).

CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that neuroregulatory dysfunction in dopaminergic pathways involving SN potentially mediates aberrant time-varying functional reorganizations in schizophrenia. This finding enriches the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia from the perspective of brain dynamics.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2024

Erschienen:

2024

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - year:2024

Enthalten in:

Psychological medicine - (2024) vom: 25. März, Seite 1-11

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Deng, Lihong [VerfasserIn]
Wei, Wei [VerfasserIn]
Qiao, Chunxia [VerfasserIn]
Yin, Yubing [VerfasserIn]
Li, Xiaojing [VerfasserIn]
Yu, Hua [VerfasserIn]
Jian, Lingqi [VerfasserIn]
Ma, Xiaohong [VerfasserIn]
Zhao, Liansheng [VerfasserIn]
Wang, Qiang [VerfasserIn]
Deng, Wei [VerfasserIn]
Guo, Wanjun [VerfasserIn]
Li, Tao [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Brain dynamics
Coactivation pattern
Dopamine hypothesis
Edge-centric model
First-episode treatment-naïve schizophrenia
Journal Article
Resting-state fMRI

Anmerkungen:

Date Revised 25.03.2024

published: Print-Electronic

Citation Status Publisher

doi:

10.1017/S0033291724000655

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM370128257