Sun Xiaoyi, Xia Mingrui
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
Schizophr Bull. 2025 Mar 14;51(2):309-324. doi: 10.1093/schbul/sbae148.
Schizophrenia is conceptualized as a brain connectome disorder that can emerge as early as late childhood and adolescence. However, the underlying neurodevelopmental basis remains unclear. Recent interest has grown in children and adolescent patients who experience symptom onset during critical brain development periods. Inspired by advanced methodological theories and large patient cohorts, Chinese researchers have made significant original contributions to understanding altered brain connectome development in early-onset schizophrenia (EOS).
We conducted a search of PubMed and Web of Science for studies on brain connectomes in schizophrenia and neurodevelopment. In this selective review, we first address the latest theories of brain structural and functional development. Subsequently, we synthesize Chinese findings regarding mechanisms of brain structural and functional abnormalities in EOS. Finally, we highlight several pivotal challenges and issues in this field.
Typical neurodevelopment follows a trajectory characterized by gray matter volume pruning, enhanced structural and functional connectivity, improved structural connectome efficiency, and differentiated modules in the functional connectome during late childhood and adolescence. Conversely, EOS deviates with excessive gray matter volume decline, cortical thinning, reduced information processing efficiency in the structural brain network, and dysregulated maturation of the functional brain network. Additionally, common functional connectome disruptions of default mode regions were found in early- and adult-onset patients.
Chinese research on brain connectomes of EOS provides crucial evidence for understanding pathological mechanisms. Further studies, utilizing standardized analyses based on large-sample multicenter datasets, have the potential to offer objective markers for early intervention and disease treatment.
精神分裂症被概念化为一种早在儿童晚期和青少年期就可能出现的脑连接组障碍。然而，其潜在的神经发育基础仍不清楚。最近，对于在关键脑发育时期出现症状的儿童和青少年患者的关注有所增加。受先进方法理论和大量患者队列的启发，中国研究人员在理解早发性精神分裂症（EOS）中脑连接组发育改变方面做出了重大原创贡献。
我们在PubMed和Web of Science上搜索了关于精神分裂症和神经发育中脑连接组的研究。在这篇选择性综述中，我们首先阐述脑结构和功能发育的最新理论。随后，我们综合了中国关于EOS中脑结构和功能异常机制的研究结果。最后，我们强调了该领域的几个关键挑战和问题。
典型的神经发育遵循一条轨迹，其特征是在儿童晚期和青少年期灰质体积修剪、结构和功能连接增强、结构连接组效率提高以及功能连接组中模块分化。相反，EOS表现出偏离，灰质体积过度下降、皮质变薄、脑结构网络中信息处理效率降低以及脑功能网络成熟失调。此外，在早发性和成年性发病患者中都发现了默认模式区域常见的功能连接组破坏。
中国对EOS脑连接组的研究为理解病理机制提供了关键证据。利用基于大样本多中心数据集的标准化分析进行的进一步研究，有可能为早期干预和疾病治疗提供客观标志物。
