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Updated: May 15, 2026

Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
[Diffusion tensor imaging analyses of white matter in healthy siblings of schizophrenics]
Zhuang Kang1, Qin-ling Wei, Yan-xia Tang
1Department of Radiology, Third Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510630, China.
Objective:
To explore the diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) features of white matter in healthy siblings of schizophrenics.
Methods:
Twenty healthy siblings of schizophrenics and 45 healthy controls without a family history of mental disorder. They responded to advertised recruitment during December 2009 and March 2012. All participants underwent diffusion weighted magnetic resonance images with a single-shot echo planar imaging (EPI) sequence aligned to straight axial plane. The fractional anisotropy (FA) images of two groups underwent two-sample t-test with SPM5 software.
Results:
The healthy siblings of schizophrenics demonstrated a significant decrease of regional white matter FA values in right anterior cingulated (MNI: x = 9, y = 43, z = 4; cluster = 106).
Conclusion:
Reduced white matter integrity in right anterior cingulated may be a risk actor of schizophrenia.
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