Decreased entorhinal cortex volumes in schizophrenia

Area of Science:

• Neuroimaging
• Psychiatry
• Neuroanatomy

Background:

• The entorhinal cortex, crucial for memory and learning, is located in the medial temporal lobe.
• Previous MRI studies on entorhinal cortex volume in schizophrenia yielded inconsistent results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate entorhinal cortex and hippocampus volumes in a large schizophrenia cohort.
• To assess potential differences in medial temporal lobe structures between patients and controls.

Main Methods:

• Utilized MRI scans from 70 schizophrenia patients and 77 healthy controls.
• Employed Brains2 software for precise volumetric analysis of the entorhinal cortex and hippocampus.

Main Results:

• Schizophrenia patients showed significantly reduced entorhinal cortex volumes compared to controls.
• Right-sided entorhinal cortex volumes were particularly smaller in patients.
• Altered entorhinal cortex asymmetry was observed in schizophrenia patients.

Conclusions:

• Confirms reduced entorhinal cortex volumes and altered asymmetry in schizophrenia.
• These structural changes may contribute to the psychopathology and cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.
• Further longitudinal studies are needed to determine if entorhinal cortex shrinkage is a cause or consequence of schizophrenia.