Visual processing and BDNF levels in first-episode schizophrenia

• Published in: Psychiatry research Vol. 305; p. 114200
• Main Authors: Shoshina, Irina I., Hovis, Jeffery K., Felisberti, Fatima M., Santos, Natanael A., Adreeva, Anna, Butler, Pamela D., Fernandes, Thiago P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.11.2021
• Subjects: Brain; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; Cognition; Contrast processing; Female; First-episode; Humans; Schizophrenia; Schizophrenia - diagnosis; Visual functions; Visual Perception; First-episode; Schizophrenia; Visual functions; Contrast processing; Brain-derived neurotrophic factor
• ISSN: 0165-1781; 1872-7123
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114200

•First-episode schizophrenia patients have better visual processing than controls.•Unclear are the ways in which this are related to BDNF levels.•Here, we compared for the first time this relation using different techniques and a range of frequencies.•BDNF levels were correlated with low and high spatial frequencies.•BDNF levels were correlated with disease duration. Previous studies have shown that patients diagnosed with schizophrenia (SCZ) have deficits in early visual processing, namely contrast processing. The brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) is an important measure to investigate neuroplasticity in some visual functions like visual perception. In this study, we investigated the relationship between visual processing and BDNF levels in first-episode SCZ patients. Thirty-nine healthy controls and 43 first-episode SCZ patients were enrolled. Contrast sensitivity measurements were conducted using low, mid- and high spatial frequencies. First-episode SCZ patients had higher contrast sensitivity than healthy controls for all frequencies, except for the middle spatial frequency. Negative correlations were found between BDNF, contrast sensitivity and clinical variables, mostly for middle and high spatial frequencies among females. Our results provide support for (i) the association of SCZ with alterations of magno- and parvocellular pathway functioning and (ii) decreased BDNF levels in first-episode SCZ patients. This study highlights the importance of using biomarkers along with other measures to investigate visual processing in SCZ and other disorders.