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Updated: Jun 17, 2026
Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Analysis of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Published on: July 28, 2013
Assessing regional intracortical myelination in schizophrenia spectrum and bipolar disorders using the optimized
Kjetil Nordbø Jørgensen1,2, Stener Nerland1,3, Nora Berz Slapø1
1The Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research (NORMENT), Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Background:
Dysmyelination could be part of the pathophysiology of schizophrenia spectrum (SCZ) and bipolar disorders (BPD), yet few studies have examined myelination of the cerebral cortex. The ratio of T1- and T2-weighted magnetic resonance images (MRI) correlates with intracortical myelin. We investigated the T1w/T2w-ratio and its age trajectories in patients and healthy controls (CTR) and explored associations with antipsychotic medication use and psychotic symptoms.
Methods:
Patients with SCZ (n = 64; mean age = 30.4 years, s.d. = 9.8), BPD (n = 91; mean age 31.0 years, s.d. = 10.2), and CTR (n = 155; mean age = 31.9 years, s.d. = 9.1) who participated in the TOP study (NORMENT, University of Oslo, Norway) were clinically assessed and scanned using a General Electric 3 T MRI system. T1w/T2w-ratio images were computed using an optimized pipeline with intensity normalization and field inhomogeneity correction. Vertex-wise regression models were used to compare groups and examine group × age interactions. In regions showing significant differences, we explored associations with antipsychotic medication use and psychotic symptoms.
Results:
No main effect of diagnosis was found. However, age slopes of the T1w/T2w-ratio differed significantly between SCZ and CTR, predominantly in frontal and temporal lobe regions: Lower T1w/T2w-ratio values with higher age were found in CTR, but not in SCZ. Follow-up analyses revealed a more positive age slope in patients who were using antipsychotics and patients using higher chlorpromazine-equivalent doses.
Conclusions:
While we found no evidence of reduced intracortical myelin in SCZ or BPD relative to CTR, different regional age trajectories in SCZ may suggest a promyelinating effect of antipsychotic medication.
