The thalamus and neuropsychiatric illness

Although the cerebral cortex is usually thought of as a likely substrate for psychiatric disease, the close relationship of thalamus to cortex, both structurally and functionally, argues for much closer consideration of this structure in both research and clinical settings. Four thalamic nuclei with widely differing functions are considered in terms of the specific roles they appear to play in central nervous system activity and their possible roles in psychiatric disease. These nuclei include the ventrobasal complex, the nucleus reticularis thalami, the mediodorsal nucleus, and the dorsal thalamic system with special reference to the habenula.