Regional differentiation of neuron morphology in human left and right hippocampus: comparing normal to schizophrenia

Regional differentiation based on size, form, and orientation angle of the soma of individual neurons in human post-mortem hippocampus was determined through correlations between pairs of hippocampal subfields in each side separately. The neurons were previously measured on a computer. In the normal cases, a left-right asymmetrical pattern of regional differentiation based on soma size emerged, while for form and orientation angle, the patterns appeared symmetrical. In schizophrenia, regional soma size, form, and orientation variability were expressed largely symmetrically. Regional correlations based on neuronal density revealed an asymmetrical hemispheric pattern in the normal cases versus a nearly symmetrical pattern in schizophrenia. Taken together, the inter-regional correlations favor a hippocampal landscape that deviates in each side from connectivity based on the canonical trisynaptic hippocampal circuitry. It is proposed that during morphogenesis, rudimentary inter-regional networks are formed through specific interactions between regional neurons; these networks are present in the adult hippocampus and may be vulnerable in brain diseases.