PSYKISK-Psykisk helse

Schizophrenia is often considered being a neurodevelopmental disease. The phenotype is heterogeneous with high heritability (80%) and unknown etiology and pathophysiology. Morphological brain abnormalities appear to be intrinsic features of the disease. I n previous scientific studies, abnormalities appear to be progressive over time but findings are ambiguous. It is not known whether the brain changes constitute etiological risk markers or consequences of disease or treatment. In the present project, we characterize brain morphology over time in follow-up studies from at least 400 cross-sectional (characterized at baseline) MR scans of adult and adolescent first-episode patients with schizophrenia or bipolar spectrum disorder and healthy control subject s. The subjects are re-investigated with MR, neuropsychological testing, and clinical assessments initially at one-year after onset. This is part of a long-term research agenda with a goal to perform 10 years follow up studies, but the current study will focus on the first year after the first-episode of psychosis. Support is requested to perform data collection, MR image processing and data analysis. From MRI and computer image analysis, quantitated measures of brain tissue volumes, white matter integri ty, cortical thickness and folding, are compared with data on cognitive and global functioning, substance misuse, obstetric complications, clinical symptoms, and medication from the TOP study, to identify disease subtypes, understand disease progress and refine the diagnosis. Genes that have shown to be associated with the diagnosis or are relevant for neurodevelopment or glutamate signalling pathways known to be disrupted in schizophrenia, are examined for association with brain morphology. A Swedish sub ject material of 200 patients with chronic schizophrenia and healthy controls characterized by the same methods with completed 5-year follow-up is available for analysis and replication.