Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging RSS feed: Current Issue. The Neuroimaging section of Psychiatry Research publishes manuscripts on positron emission tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, computerized electroencephalographic topography, regional cerebral blood flow, computed tomography, magnetoencephalography, autoradiography, post-mortem regional analyses, and other imaging techniques. Reports concerning results in psychiatric disorders, dementias, and the effects of behaviorial tasks and pharmacological treatments are featured. We also invite manuscripts on the methods of obtaining images and computer processing of the images themselves. Selected case reports are also published.http://www.psyn-journal.com/?rss=yesElsevier Inc.en © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging0925-4927181330 March 2010 © 2010 Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. healthpermissions@elsevier.comhttp://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492710000600/abstract?rss=yesEditorial Board10.1016/S0925-4927(10)00060-0Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8IFCIFChttp://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002777/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: In the present study we obtained functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data in occasional gamblers (OG) and problem gamblers (PG) during a quasi-realistic blackjack game. We focused on neuronal correlates of risk assessment and reward processing. Participants had to decide whether to draw or not to draw a card in a high-risk or low-risk blackjack situation. We assumed PG would show differences in prefrontal and ventral striatal brain regions in comparison to OG during risk assessment and due to the winning or losing of money. Although both groups did not differ in behavioral data, blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signals in PG and OG significantly differed in thalamic, inferior frontal, and superior temporal regions. Whereas PG demonstrated a consistent signal increase during high-risk situations and a decrease in low-risk situations, OG presented the opposite pattern. During reward processing as derived from contrasting winning vs. losing situations, both PG and OG groups showed an enhancement of ventral striatal and posterior cingulate activity. Furthermore, PG demonstrated a distinct fronto-parietal activation pattern which has been discussed to reflect a cue-induced addiction memory network which was triggered by gambling-related cues.Neurobiological correlates of problem gambling in a quasi-realistic blackjack scenario as revealed by fMRIStephan F. Miedl, Thorsten Fehr, Gerhard Meyer, Manfred Herrmann10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.11.008Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging165173http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002698/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of early abstinence cocaine users offer information about the state of the brain when most cocaine users seek treatment. This study examined the relationship between pretreatment brain function and subsequent treatment response in 19 treatment-seeking early abstinence cocaine-dependent (CD) subjects. These subjects and 14 non-drug-using control subjects underwent fMRI while performing a working memory task with three levels of difficulty. CD subjects were then randomized to treatment studies. Results showed CD subjects had significantly lower (random effects, corrected for multiple comparisons) brain activation in caudate, putamen, cingulate gyrus, middle and superior frontal gyri, inferior frontal gyrus pars triangularis and pars opercularis, precentral gyrus, and thalamus compared with non-drug-using controls. Within CD subjects, thalamic activation significantly correlated with treatment response. This study shows CD subjects in early abstinence have alterations of brain function in frontal, striatal, and thalamic brain regions known to be part of a circuit associated with motor control, reward, and cognition. Subjects with pretreatment thalamic deactivation showed the poorest treatment response, possibly related to thalamic involvement in mesocortical and mesolimbic dopamine projections.Working memory fMRI activation in cocaine-dependent subjects: Association with treatment responseF. Gerard Moeller, Joel L. Steinberg, Joy M. Schmitz, Liangsuo Ma, Shijing Liu, Kimberly L. Kjome, Nuvan Rathnayaka, Larry A. Kramer, Ponnada A. Narayana10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.11.003Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging174182http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS092549270900198X/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Eating disorder (ED) patients have severe disturbances in the perception of body shape and weight. The authors investigated brain activation patterns during the perception of distorted body images in various subtypes of ED. Participants comprised 33 patients with EDs (11 with restricting-type anorexia nervosa (AN-R), 11 with binging–purging type anorexia nervosa (AN-BP), 11 with bulimia nervosa (BN)) and 11 healthy women. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to examine cerebral response to morphed images of subjects' own bodies, as well as that of another woman. The amygdala was significantly activated in AN-R patients, AN-BP patients, and healthy women in response to their own fat-image, but this did not occur in BN patients. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) was significantly activated in AN-BP patients and healthy women, but not in AN-R and BN patients. Our results showed that the various EDs are different with respect to significant activation of the amygdala and PFC during the processing of participants' own fat-image. Brain activation pattern differences between the various EDs may underlie cognitive differences with respect to distorted body image, and therefore might reflect a general failure to represent and evaluate one's own body in a realistic fashion.Brain activation during the perception of distorted body images in eating disordersYoshie Miyake, Yasumasa Okamoto, Keiichi Onoda, Mitsuhaya Kurosaki, Naoko Shirao, Yuri Okamoto, Shigeto Yamawaki10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.09.001Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging183192http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002455/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Schizophrenia and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are associated with similar deficits in working memory, attention, and inhibition. Both disorders also involve abnormalities of white matter integrity, possibly reflecting neural communication disruptions. There are likely some regional white matter abnormalities that underlie the common cognitive impairment, though also some regional abnormalities unique to each disorder. We used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to compare white matter integrity, as indicated by fractional anisotropy (FA), in adolescents with schizophrenia (n=15) or ADHD (n=14) and healthy controls (n=26). Schizophrenia patients had uniquely low FA, relative to the other two groups, in bilateral cerebral peduncles, anterior and posterior corpus callosum, right anterior corona radiata, and right superior longitudinal fasciculus. ADHD patients had uniquely high FA in left inferior and right superior frontal regions. Both clinical groups had lower FA than controls in left posterior fornix. The two disorders generally demonstrated distinct patterns of abnormal connectivity suggesting that common cognitive and behavioral deficits derive from distinct sources, though the posterior fornix may be involved in both disorders. Schizophrenia was associated with abnormally low FA in widespread circuitry indicative of general connectivity disruptions, whereas ADHD was associated with abnormally high FA in frontal networks that may indicate impaired branching of fibers.Differential fractional anisotropy abnormalities in adolescents with ADHD or schizophreniaNicholas D. Davenport, Canan Karatekin, Tonya White, Kelvin O. Lim10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.012Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Diffusion Tensor Imaging193198http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002200/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: In this study, short echo time 1H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) was applied for quantification of neurometabolites using the LC Model algorithm in Taiwanese adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Proton magnetic resonance spectra were acquired bilaterally on the prefrontal area (part of the anterior cingulate gyrus and part of the medial frontal gyrus) in 15 adolescents with ADHD (average age of 13.88years) and 22 controls (average age of 14.85years). Absolute metabolite levels and ratios relative to creatine plus phosphocreatine (Cr+PCr) were obtained to be compared between groups. Results showed that adolescents with ADHD had significantly lower mean right prefrontal levels of Cr+PCr as compared with the controls. No significant differences between groups were noted in the remainder of the prefrontal metabolites. As for the group comparison of relative ratios, the N-acetylaspartate/Cr+PCr ratio was significantly higher in the right prefrontal regions of ADHD adolescents. This finding provides evidence of a right prefrontal neurochemical alteration in ADHD adolescents, which is consistent with current ADHD theory of prefrontal neuropathology with developmental mechanism. In addition, it highlights the importance of the method in interpretation of MRS findings in the context of ADHD.Short-TE proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy investigation in adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorderPinchen Yang, Ming-Ting Wu, Shih-Shan Dung, Cheng-Wen Ko10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.001Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy199203http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002005/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: First episodes (FE) of psychosis may evolve or not to schizophrenia in ensuing years, but there is a lack of reliable predictors of which patients will have to face such an unfavorable outcome. Given the replicated structural alterations of the brain in schizophrenia, it seems advisable to assess whether the alterations of this kind that can be detected at the time of an initial psychotic episode are different depending on the outcome of the patients. To this end, here we applied voxel-based morphometry to assess whether the degree of cerebral abnormalities differ between 30 FE patients who evolved to schizophrenia in the ensuing 2years and another 14 FE patients who could not be diagnosed as such during that period. Forty-one controls were also included in the study. We found that the FE patients who evolved to schizophrenia had a significantly lower GM value than the controls bilaterally in the left dorsolateral prefrontal (BA 9) and in left anterior cingulate (BA 33) regions while the FE patients who did not develop schizophrenia showed a distinct, right-sided pattern of deviation (visual cortex, superior temporal gyrus and inferior frontal). The direct comparison between FE patients who evolved or not evolved to schizophrenia did not reveal significant differences. Taken together, our results support the notion that brain abnormalities may be different in psychotic FE patients depending on their evolution in the medium term.Voxel-based morphometry comparison between first episodes of psychosis with and without evolution to schizophreniaVicente Molina, Javier Sanz, Rocío Villa, Javier Pérez, David González, Fernando Sarramea, Alejandro Ballesteros, Gemma Galindo, Juan Antonio Hernández10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.09.003Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Voxel-Based Morphometry204210http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002364/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: In this study, we present an accurate, reliable, robust, and time-efficient technique for a semi-automatic segmentation of neuroanatomically defined cortical structures in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans. It involves manual drawing of the border of a region of interest (ROI), supported by three-dimensional (3D) visualization techniques (rendering), and a subsequent automatic tracing of the gray matter voxels inside the ROI by means of an automatic tissue classifier. The approach has been evaluated on a set of MRI scans of 75 participants selected from the Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS) and applied to cortical brain structures for both the left and right hemispheres, viz., the inferior prefrontal cortex (PFC); the orbital PFC; the dorsolateral PFC; the anterior cingulate cortex; and the posterior cingulate cortex. The use of a 3D surface-rendered brain can be rotated in any direction was invaluable in identifying anatomical landmarks on the basis of gyral and sulcal topography. This resulted in a high accuracy (anatomical correctness) and reliability: the intra-rater intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was between 0.96 and 0.99. Furthermore, the obtained time savings were substantial, i.e., up to a factor of 7.5 compared with fully manual segmentations.A time-saving and facilitating approach for segmentation of anatomically defined cortical regions: MRI volumetryEd H.B.M. Gronenschild, Saartje Burgmans, Floortje Smeets, Eric F.P.M. Vuurman, Harry B.M. Uylings, Jelle Jolles10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.003Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Methodology- Magnetic Resonance Imaging211218http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002443/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Hippocampal volume is reduced in Alzheimer Disease (AD) and has been proposed as a possible surrogate biomarker to aid early diagnosis. Whilst automated methods to segment the hippocampus from magnetic resonance images are available, manual segmentation, in spite of being time-consuming and unsuitable for large samples, is still the standard. In order to study the validity of FreeSurfer's automated method, we compared hippocampal automated measures with manual tracing in a sample composed of healthy elderly (N=41), Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) (N=23), and AD (N=25) subjects. Percent volume overlap, percent volume difference, correlations, and Bland–Altman plots were studied. Automated measures were slightly larger than hand tracing ones (mean difference 10%). Percent volume overlap showed good results, but was far from perfect (78%). Manual and automated volume correlations were approximately 0.84 and the Bland–Altman analysis showed acceptable interchangeability of methods. Within-group analysis demonstrated that patient samples obtained smaller values in validity indexes than controls. Globally, FreeSurfer's automated hippocampal volumetry showed adequate validity when compared to manual tracing, with a tendency to overestimation. Nevertheless, the greater difference between automated and manual segmentation in atrophic brains suggests that studies in AD based on this software could be more likely to produce false negatives.Manual validation of FreeSurfer's automated hippocampal segmentation in normal aging, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer Disease subjectsGonzalo Sánchez-Benavides, Beatriz Gómez-Ansón, Aitor Sainz, Yolanda Vives, Manuel Delfino, Jordi Peña-Casanova10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.011Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Methodology- Magnetic Resonance Imaging219225http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS092549270900239X/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Emotional dysregulation is one of the key symptoms of patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). In the present study it is hypothesized that borderline patients display a cortical hyper-responsivity to emotional stimuli compared with a healthy control group. Further, we aimed to examine whether BPD patients were able to suppress stimuli with negative emotional valence as well as healthy control participants could. This is the first study addressing the electrophysiological processing of emotional stimuli in BPD. The electrophysiological response to emotional information was studied among 30 BPD patients and compared with the response in 30 normal controls using event-related potentials (ERPs). Participants were shown pictures selected from the International Affective Picture System with neutral, positive, and negative valence. After performing an attentional task, the participants were asked to perform a reappraisal task. The assignment was to consciously suppress emotions that might occur after viewing pictures with an unpleasant content. Borderline patients displayed larger late positive potentials (LPP) to pictures with an unpleasant valence as compared with the control group, indicating an enhanced elaborative processing of unpleasant stimuli. However, they did not differ on the reappraisal task. Borderline patients show an enhanced emotional cortical reactivity to unpleasant stimuli as compared with a control group. This suggests an emotional dysfunctioning in BPD patients. This feature might be an important focus in the treatment of BPD.Altered emotional information processing in borderline personality disorder: An electrophysiological studyMarlies A.E. Marissen, Linda Meuleman, Ingmar H.A. Franken10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.006Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Evoked Potentials226232http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002984/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: Frontal systems dysfunction and abandonment fears represent central features of borderline personality disorder (BPD). BPD subjects (n=10) and matched non-psychiatric comparison subjects (n=10) completed a social–cognitive task with two confederates instructed to either include or exclude subjects from a circumscribed interaction. Evoked cerebral blood oxygenation in frontal cortex was measured using 16-channel functional near infrared spectroscopy. BPD subjects showed left medial prefrontal cortex hyperactivation during social exclusion suggesting potential dysfunction of frontolimbic circuitry.Medial prefrontal cortex hyperactivation during social exclusion in borderline personality disorderAnthony C. Ruocco, John D. Medaglia, Jennifer R. Tinker, Hasan Ayaz, Evan M. Forman, Cory F. Newman, J. Michael Williams, Frank G. Hillary, Steven M. Platek, Banu Onaral, Douglas L. Chute10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.12.001Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Brief Reports233236http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002431/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: 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.High energy phosphate abnormalities normalize after antipsychotic treatment in schizophrenia: A longitudinal 31P MRS study of basal gangliaPeruvumba N. Jayakumar, Bangalore N. Gangadhar, Ganesan Venkatasubramanian, Sunali Desai, Latha Velayudhan, Dattathreya Subbakrishna, Matcheri S. Keshavan10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.010Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Brief Reports237240http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492709002388/abstract?rss=yesAbstract: The relationship between harm avoidance scores of the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire and serotonin transporter availability, as approximated using single photon emission computed tomography with [123I] ADAM, was examined. Our results showed a significant negative correlation between the harm avoidance total score, as well as the asthenia subscore, and serotonin transporter availability, particularly in males.The association between the harm avoidance subscale of the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire and serotonin transporter availability in the brainstem of male volunteersI Ting Wu, I Hui Lee, Tzung Lieh Yeh, Kao Ching Chen, Po See Chen, Wei Jen Yao, Yen Kuang Yang10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.005Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8Brief Reports241244http://www.psyn-journal.com/article/PIIS0925492710000636/abstract?rss=yesContents10.1016/S0925-4927(10)00063-6Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging 181, 3 (2010)2010-03-30Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging2010-03-301813S0925-4927(10)X0003-8OBCOBC