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Dissociable morphometric differences of the inferior parietal lobule in schizophrenia

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Abstract

Inferior parietal lobule (IPL) forms an integral part of a critical frontoparietal network, which has been implicated in various clinical symptoms and cognitive deficits seen in schizophrenia. Despite its functional relevance, the relatively few studies that have investigated the structural changes in the IPL report inconsistent findings concerning the nature and localization of these changes. We employed a blinded, automated labelling procedure to measure cortical thickness, surface area and the degree of cortical folding of the two distinct subregions of the IPL (Angular Gyrus and Supramarginal Gyrus) in 57 patients with schizophrenia and 41 controls using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging. Within the IPL, we observed more pronounced morphological changes in supramarginal gyrus compared to angular gyrus in schizophrenia. While supramarginal gyrus in patients showed reduced gyrification, contracted surface area and thinning, the morphometric changes in angular gyrus were largely confined to a reduction in surface area. Significant hemispheric asymmetry was observed in the gyrification of the supramarginal gyrus. Our findings suggest that in addition to abnormalities in the neurodevelopmental processes that contribute to regional surface area and cortical thickness, a specific defect in cortical folding, especially affecting the left hemisphere, is likely to occur in schizophrenia.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a New Investigator grant from the University of Nottingham and a Interdisciplinary Research Award from the Nottingham Institute of Neuroscience, University of Nottingham. We are grateful to the volunteers who participated in this study and would like to thank Pavan Mallikarjun and Verghese Joseph for their role in clinical recruitment. We would also like to thank Thomas White, Kathrin Doege, Antonio Napolitano, Kay Head, Dawn-Marie Walker and Dorothee Auer for assisting the data acquisition.

Conflict of interest

P F Liddle has received honoraria for academic presentations from Glaxo SmithKline, AstraZeneca, Janssen-Cilag, Bristol Myers Squibb and Eli Lilly and has taken part in advisory panels for Eli Lilly, Pfizer and Glaxo SmithKline. L Palaniyappan has received a Young Investigator Fellowship sponsored by Eli Lilly.

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  1. Division of Psychiatry, University of Nottingham, A Floor, South Block, Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham, NG7 2UH, UK

    Lena Palaniyappan & Peter F. Liddle

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  1. Lena Palaniyappan
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Correspondence to Lena Palaniyappan.

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Palaniyappan, L., Liddle, P.F. Dissociable morphometric differences of the inferior parietal lobule in schizophrenia. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 262, 579–587 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-012-0314-y

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