Disentangling age- and disease-related alterations in schizophrenia brain network using structural equation modeling:
Xinyu Liu1,2,3, Hang Yang1,2, Benjamin Becker1,2
1The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China.
Human Brain Mapping
|May 7, 2021
Summary
Schizophrenia alters brain network structure, showing excessive integration and loss of regional function, particularly in the frontal cortex. Aging may worsen symptoms by further increasing network integration.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Network Science
Background:
- Functional brain networks change with aging and schizophrenia.
- The interaction between these factors on brain networks is not well understood.
- Network construction methods can introduce bias, hindering consistent findings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of schizophrenia on brain network topology using the minimal spanning tree (MST) algorithm.
- To explore the relationships between age, brain network properties, and negative symptoms in schizophrenia using structural equation modeling (SEM).
Main Methods:
- Applied the minimal spanning tree (MST) algorithm to resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data from 40 healthy controls and 40 schizophrenia patients (aged 21-55).
- Utilized graph theoretical metrics to analyze global and local brain network properties.
- Employed a novel connectivity-transitivity two-dimensional approach to characterize nodal roles.
- Used structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine interrelationships between phenotypic and connectomic variables.
Main Results:
- Schizophrenia patients exhibited a more integrated, star-like global network structure compared to controls.
- A loss of regional transitivity was observed in the dorsal frontal cortex of patients (corrected p < .05).
- Schizophrenia patients showed an increase in frontal network hubs, potentially related to the 'overloading' hypothesis.
- SEM revealed that MST integration mediated the effect of age on negative symptom severity (indirect effect 95% CI [0.026, 0.449]).
Conclusions:
- Schizophrenia is associated with significant alterations in the brain's functional network skeleton.
- Aging may exacerbate schizophrenic symptoms by enhancing network integration, potentially impairing functional specialization.
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