Reduced γ-Aminobutyric Acid and Glutamate+Glutamine Levels in Drug-Naïve Patients with First-Episode Schizophrenia but Not in Those at Ultrahigh Risk

Altered γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glutamate (Glu) levels, and an imbalance between GABAergic and glutamatergic neurotransmissions have been involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. However, it remains unclear how these abnormalities impact the onset and course of psychosis. In the present...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inNeural plasticity Vol. 2016; no. 2016; pp. 1 - 9
Main Authors Lu, Zheng, Zhang, Jianye, Wang, Jijun, Li, Chunbo, Li, Gaiying, Zeng, Botao, Xu, Lihua, Cui, Huiru, Zhang, Tianhong, Tang, Yingying, Wang, Junjie, Liu, Hui, Li, Yu
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cairo, Egypt Hindawi Publishing Corporation 2016
John Wiley & Sons, Inc
Wiley
Subjects
Adolescent
Adult
Alcohol
Brain
Drug abuse
Female
gamma-Aminobutyric Acid - metabolism
Glutamic Acid - metabolism
Glutamine - metabolism
Guardians
Humans
Informed consent
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy - methods
Male
Mental disorders
Pathophysiology
Patients
Prefrontal Cortex - metabolism
Prefrontal Cortex - physiopathology
Pregnancy
Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy - methods
Psychosis
Risk
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia - metabolism
Spectrum analysis
Young Adult
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Altered γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glutamate (Glu) levels, and an imbalance between GABAergic and glutamatergic neurotransmissions have been involved in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. However, it remains unclear how these abnormalities impact the onset and course of psychosis. In the present study, 21 drug-naïve subjects at ultrahigh risk for psychosis (UHR), 16 drug-naïve patients with first-episode schizophrenia (FES), and 23 healthy controls (HC) were enrolled. In vivo GABA and glutamate+glutamine (Glx) levels in the medial prefrontal cortex were measured using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Medial prefrontal GABA and Glx levels in FES patients were significantly lower than those in HC and UHR, respectively. GABA and Glx levels in UHR were comparable with those in HC. In each group, there was a positive correlation between GABA and Glx levels. Reduced medial prefrontal GABA and Glx levels thus may play an important role in the early stages of schizophrenia.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 14
content type line 23
Academic Editor: Lin Xu
ISSN:2090-5904
1687-5443
DOI:10.1155/2016/3915703