Disturbed planum temporale asymmetry in schizophrenia. A quantitative post-mortem study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Brain Imaging

Background:

• Schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder.
• Previous research suggests potential alterations in brain structure and function in individuals with schizophrenia.
• The planum temporale, a region within the temporal cortex, has been implicated in language and auditory processing and shows asymmetries in healthy individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate structural differences in the planum temporale between individuals with schizophrenia and healthy controls.
• To examine volume, anterior-posterior diameter, and asymmetry of the planum temporale.
• To explore potential sex-based differences in these structural parameters.

Main Methods:

• Post-mortem analysis of brain tissue from 24 schizophrenic patients and 24 age- and sex-matched controls.
• Measurement of planum temporale volume and anterior-posterior diameter.
• Calculation of asymmetry coefficients for volume and diameter.

Main Results:

• Schizophrenic patients showed a 20% reduction in left planum temporale volume (p = 0.032).
• A significant reduction in the left hemisphere's anterior-posterior diameter was observed (-20%, p = 0.008).
• Significantly different asymmetry coefficients for planum temporale volume (p = 0.02) and anterior-posterior diameter (p = 0.002) were found between groups.

Conclusions:

• The findings support the hypothesis of disturbed cerebral laterality in schizophrenia.
• Structural alterations in the planum temporale may contribute to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.
• Further research is needed to understand the implications of these findings and refine methodologies.