Sharma T, Lancaster E, Lee D, Lewis S, Sigmundsson T, Takei N, Gurling H, Barta P, Pearlson G, Murray R
Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, London.
Br J Psychiatry. 1998 Aug;173:132-8. doi: 10.1192/bjp.173.2.132.
Structural brain abnormalities have been reported in schizophrenia. We tested the hypothesis that these abnormalities represented a marker for the genetic liability to schizophrenia in a sample of people with schizophrenia and their relatives from families multiply affected with the disorder.
We compared 31 people with schizophrenia, 57 relatives and 39 unrelated control subjects. Volumetric measurement of brain structures was carried out using stereological principles from three-dimensional reconstructed magnetic resonance images.
Subjects with schizophrenia had larger lateral ventricles than their relatives and the normal control subjects. Relatives who were 'presumed obligate carriers' had larger left lateral ventricles than other relatives and the control subjects. Subjects with schizophrenia showed smaller whole brain and cerebellar volumes and larger lateral ventricles than their age- and gender-matched unaffected siblings.
In families multiply affected with schizophrenia lateral ventricular enlargement distinguishes people with schizophrenia and presumed obligate carriers from other relatives and unrelated control subjects. These changes may be a marker for a genetic liability to schizophrenia.
精神分裂症患者存在脑结构异常已见报道。我们在一个精神分裂症患者及其来自多重患病家庭的亲属样本中，检验了这些异常代表精神分裂症遗传易感性标志物这一假说。
我们比较了31名精神分裂症患者、57名亲属和39名无血缘关系的对照者。利用三维重建磁共振图像的体视学原理对脑结构进行体积测量。
精神分裂症患者的侧脑室比其亲属和正常对照者更大。“推定的 obligate 携带者”亲属的左侧脑室比其他亲属和对照者更大。与年龄和性别匹配的未患病同胞相比，精神分裂症患者的全脑和小脑体积更小，侧脑室更大。
在多重患精神分裂症的家庭中，侧脑室扩大可将精神分裂症患者及推定的 obligate 携带者与其他亲属和无血缘关系的对照者区分开来。这些变化可能是精神分裂症遗传易感性的一个标志物。
