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Prefrontal Cortex Structure in the Healthy Relatives of Schizophrenia Patients and Controls
Vina Goghari1, Kelly Rehm2, Cameron Carter3, Angus MacDonald1
1Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, USA, 2Department of Radiology, University of Minnesota, USA,
3Imaging Research Center, University of California at Davis, USA

Objective: Schizophrenia is hypothesized to be associated with functional and structural abnormalities of the prefrontal cortex. We have previously reported dysfunctional prefrontal cortex activation in never medicated first-episode schizophrenia patients (MacDonald et. al., in press) and their healthy relatives (MacDonald et. al., 2003). This study attempted to expand those findings by investigating prefrontal cortical structure in healthy relatives of schizophrenia patients.

Methods: Measurements were acquired from SPGR structural scans (3T, 1.5 mm thickness) for healthy relatives (n=22) and demographically similar healthy comparison subjects (n=23). Gray matter, white matter, and cerebrospinal fluid volumes were acquired for the total brain and prefrontal cortex. Preliminary analyses were restricted to total brain gray, white, and cerebrospinal fluid volumes.

Results & Discussion: ANCOVAs revealed no significant effect of group covarying for age, gender, and total brain volume on gray matter [F(1, 40)=2.8, p=0.1; Cohen's d=0.16; relatives mean cm3(sd)=608.62(74.46); controls mean cm3(sd)=621.16(63.31)], white matter (F=(1, 40)=1.03, p=0.32; Cohen's d=0.09; relatives mean cm3(sd)=526.08(68.65); controls mean cm3(sd)=562.08(67.39)], and cerebrospinal fluid (F(1, 40)=0.5, p=0.48; Cohen's d=0.13; relatives mean cm3(sd)=207.20(44.78); controls mean cm3(sd)=223.54(29.86)].

Conclusions: Structural abnormalities associated with the general liability to schizophrenia may be specific rather than global. This suggests further analysis of the prefrontal cortex may show larger effects, and may allow for replication of previous findings of reduced gray matter and increased cerebrospinal fluid in healthy siblings of schizophrenia patients (Cannon et. al., 1998).

References & Acknowledgements:
[1] Cannon TD, et al. (1998). Archives of General Psychiatry 55, 1084-91.
[2] MacDonald AW, et al. (in press). Specificity of prefrontal dysfunction and context processing deficits to schizophrenia in an unmedicated first-episode psychotic sample. American Journal of Psychiatry.
[3] MacDonald AW, et al. (2003). Schizophrenia Research(Supplement), 60, 228.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of University of Minnesota Graduate Research Partnership Grant and NIMH.