High energy phosphate abnormalities normalize after antipsychotic treatment in schizophrenia: A longitudinal 31P MRS study of basal ganglia

Jayakumar, Peruvumba N.; Gangadhar, Bangalore N.; Venkatasubramanian, Ganesan; Desai, Sunali; Velayudhan, Latha; Subbakrishna, Dattathreya; Keshavan, Matcheri S.

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.010

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 181, Issue 3 , Pages 237-240, 30 March 2010

High energy phosphate abnormalities normalize after antipsychotic treatment in schizophrenia: A longitudinal ³¹P MRS study of basal ganglia

Peruvumba N. Jayakumar
- Department of Neuroimaging & Interventional Radiology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India
Bangalore N. Gangadhar
- Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences, Bangalore, 560029, India
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 80 26995260; fax: +91 80 26564830.
Ganesan Venkatasubramanian
- Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences, Bangalore, 560029, India
Sunali Desai
- Department of Neuroimaging & Interventional Radiology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India
Latha Velayudhan
- Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health & Neurosciences, Bangalore, 560029, India
Dattathreya Subbakrishna
- Department of Biostatistics, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India
Matcheri S. Keshavan
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Landmark Building, 401 Park Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA

Received 19 April 2009; received in revised form 30 August 2009; accepted 16 October 2009.

Abstract

We reported increased high-energy phosphate metabolism in the basal ganglia of antipsychotic-naïve schizophrenia patients using ³¹P Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS). These patients were followed up for 1 year and and reassessed using ³¹P MRS. Fourteen (8 males) patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia and 14 (11 males) healthy controls underwent ³¹P MRS of sub-cortical structures (predominantly basal ganglia) twice (mean±S.D. interscan interval 1.15±0.17year) on a 1.5T scanner. Total scores on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) decreased significantly after treatment in schizophrenia patients. Patients had significantly lower mean PCr/ATP ratios than healthy controls at baseline but not during the follow-up. In patients, there was a significant positive correlation between the magnitude of improvement in PANSS total scores and the extent of change in the PCr/ATP ratio. Findings support the hypothesis that reduction of energy demand or induction of decreased energy-demanding processes might underlie the mechanism of action of antipsychotics in schizophrenia.