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Impaired hierarchical control within the lateral prefrontal cortex in schizophrenia
Guillaume Barbalat1, Valerian Chambon, Philippe J D Domenech
1Centre de Neuroscience Cognitive, UMR 5229 CNRS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon1, Lyon, France. gbarbalat@isc.cnrs.fr
Biological Psychiatry
|April 13, 2011
Summary
Schizophrenia impairs hierarchical control in the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC). Patients show a top-down functional disconnection, impacting cognitive control and action selection based on past events.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Psychiatry
Background:
- Schizophrenia is linked to cognitive control deficits, potentially due to impaired lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) functional specialization.
- Understanding functional interactions between LPFC subregions is crucial for explaining these deficits.
- A cascade model posits rostrocaudal LPFC organization, with anterior regions influencing posterior regions for action selection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate functional interactions along the LPFC rostrocaudal axis in schizophrenia.
- To test a hierarchical control model of LPFC functioning.
Main Methods:
- Used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in 15 schizophrenia patients and 14 controls.
- Assessed effective connectivity within the LPFC rostrocaudal axis using structural equation modeling and psychophysiological interactions.
Main Results:
- Healthy subjects demonstrated top-down influence from rostral to caudal LPFC for past event control.
- Schizophrenia patients lacked significant effective connectivity from rostral to caudal LPFC in both hemispheres.
Conclusions:
- Hierarchical control along the LPFC rostrocaudal axis is impaired in schizophrenia.
- This study provides the first evidence of top-down functional disconnection within the LPFC in schizophrenia.
- Disrupted rostral to caudal LPFC connectivity may impair stimulus-response selection based on past events.
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