Reduced hippocampal and parahippocampal volumes in murderers with schizophrenia

Yang, Yaling; Raine, Adrian; Han, Chen-Bo; Schug, Robert A.; Toga, Arthur W.; Narr, Katherine L.

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.013

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 182, Issue 1 , Pages 9-13, 30 April 2010

Reduced hippocampal and parahippocampal volumes in murderers with schizophrenia

Yaling Yang
- Laboratory of NeuroImaging, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Corresponding author.
Adrian Raine
- Department of Criminology, Psychiatry, and Psychology, University of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia, PA, USA
Chen-Bo Han
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Nanjing Brain Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
Robert A. Schug
- Department of Psychology, University of Southern California. Los Angeles, CA, USA
Arthur W. Toga
- Laboratory of NeuroImaging, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Katherine L. Narr
- Laboratory of NeuroImaging, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Received 13 June 2009; received in revised form 27 October 2009; accepted 29 October 2009.

Abstract

Evidence has accumulated to suggest that individuals with schizophrenia are at increased risk for violent offending. Furthermore, converging evidence suggests that abnormalities in the fronto-limbic system, including the prefrontal cortex, the hippocampus, and the parahippocampal gyrus, may contribute towards both neuropsychological disturbances in schizophrenia and violent behavior. Since the behavioral and clinical consequences of disturbed fronto-limbic circuitry appear to differ in schizophrenia and violence, it may be argued that patients with schizophrenia who exhibit violent behavior would demonstrate different structural abnormalities compared to their non-violent counterparts. However, the neurobiological basis underlying homicide offenders with schizophrenia remains unclear and little is known regarding the cross-cultural applicability of the findings. Using a 2×2 factorial design on a total Chinese sample of 92 males and females, we found reduced gray matter volume in the hippocampus and parahippocampal gyrus in murderers with schizophrenia, in the parahippocampal gyrus in murderers without schizophrenia, and in the prefrontal cortex in non-violent schizophrenia compared to normal controls. Results provide initial evidence demonstrating cross-cultural generalizability of prior fronto-limbic findings on violent schizophrenia. Future studies examining subtle morphological changes in frontal and limbic structures in association with clinical and behavioral characteristics may help further clarify the neurobiological basis of violent behavior.