As a highly heterogeneous disorder, schizophrenia shows notable interindividual variation in clinical manifestations. On that account, an increasing number of studies begin to examine the interindividual variability in neuroimaging characterization in schizophrenia. However, whether schizophrenia demonstrates higher interindividual morphological variability than health controls (HCs) remains unknown. T1-weighted anatomical images were obtained from patients with schizophrenia (n = 61) and matched HCs (n = 73). For each subject, voxel-wise gray matter volume was obtained using voxel-based morphometry analysis. We first inquired whether patients with schizophrenia showed higher interindividual structural variation than HCs using the person based similarity index (PBSI). Then, we examined differences of voxel-wise morphological coefficient of variation (CV) between schizophrenia and HCs. To further associate identified regions showing higher variability in schizophrenia with cognitive/functional processes, functional annotation was performed. Patients with schizophrenia exhibited lower PBSIs than matched HCs, suggesting higher interindividual morphological variability in schizophrenia. The following results showed that patients with schizophrenia exhibited higher CVs than HCs in distributed brain regions including the striatum, hippocampus, thalamus, parahippocampa gyrus, frontal gyrus, and amygdala. Brain regions showing higher CVs in schizophrenia were significantly implicated in affective, incentive and reward related terms. These results provide a new insight into the high clinical heterogeneity and facilitate personalized diagnose and treatment in schizophrenia.
Photobiomodulation (PBM), as a form of light therapy, has been applied broadly in the medical practice. The biological photoreceptors use small-molecule cofactors called chromophores to detect light and convert a physical signal into a biochemical signal transmission cascade. Visible light (380-780 nm) can activate specialized photoreceptors to stimulate vision and regulate circadian rhythm. Compared with visible light, near-infrared (NIR) light (780-1,100 nm) has better tissue penetration depths, enabling us to carry out non-invasive low-level laser therapy (LLLT) for different tissues. Mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase is the main NIR photoreceptor. The basic effect is to promote the generation of ATP through the respiratory chain. LLLT can enhance blood circulation, alleviate inflammation, promote muscle damage repair, stem cell proliferation and so on. The neuroprotective effect of LLLT on central nervous system (CNS) diseases has been preliminarily verified in animal models, which is expected to improve the cognitive function of Alzheimer's patients, motor symptoms of Parkinson's patients and mental disorders of patients with depression, thus improving the quality of life of patients. Understanding its protective effect and mechanisms will contribute to better therapeutic application in the future. In this review, we will discuss the antidepressant effect of LLLT, its possible mechanisms, and existing problems with its applications.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.