Morphology of Anterior Cingulate Cortex and Its Relation to Schizophrenia

Abstract

Cortical folding of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), particularly the cingulate (CS) and the paracingulate (PCS) sulci, represents a neurodevelopmental marker. Deviations in in utero development in schizophrenia can be traced using CS and PCS morphometry. In the present study, we measured the length of CS, PCS, and their segments on T1 MRI scans in 93 patients with first- episode schizophrenia and 42 healthy controls. Besides the length, the frequency and the left-right asymmetry of CS/PCS were compared in patients and controls. Distribution of the CS and PCS morphotypes in patients was different from controls. Parcellated sulcal pattern CS3a in the left hemisphere was longer in patients (53.8 ± 25.7 mm vs. 32.7 ± 19.4 mm in controls, p < 0.05), while in CS3c it was reversed—longer in controls (52.5 ± 22.5 mm as opposed to 36.2 ± 12.9 mm, n.s. in patients). Non parcellated PCS in the right hemisphere were longer in patients compared to controls (19.4 ± 10.2 mm vs. 12.1 ± 12.4 mm, p < 0.001). Therefore, concurrent presence of PCS1 and CS1 in the left hemisphere and to some extent in the right hemisphere may be suggestive of a higher probability of schizophrenia.

Unique longitudinal contributions of sulcal interruptions to reading acquisition in children

“…A growing number of empirical findings identify relationships between the morphology of indentations (known as sulci) in the cerebral cortex and individual differences in cognition (e.g., as reviewed in Cachia et al, 2021;Mangin et al, 2019;Weiner, 2019Weiner, , 2023. For example, sulcal morphology in various human association cortices that have expanded significantly throughout evolution has been related to individual differences in abstract reasoning, executive function, inhibitory control, memory, face processing, and reading, as well as psychopathology (Amiez et al, 2018;Borst et al, 2014;Cachia et al, 2014;Garrison et al, 2015;Im et al, 2016;Lahutsina et al, 2023;Maboudian et al, 2024;Parker et al, 2023;Tissier et al, 2018;Voorhies et al, 2021;Willbrand et al, 2022;Yao et al, 2022). Moreover, recent research suggests that individual differences in sulcal interruptions are also related to individual differences in cognitive abilities such as numerical processing (Roell et al, 2021;Schwizer Ashkenazi et al, 2024), language and memory (Santacroce et al, 2024), and reading (Borst et al, 2016;Cachia et al, 2018).…”

Benefits and Meaning of Lipids Profile in Relation to Oxidative Balance and Brain Morphology in Schizophrenia

“…The frontal cortex, temporal pole, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and putamen are involved in pathogenesis of SZ [27]. Lahutsina et al suggested that the ACC gray matter reductions may presage psychosis onset [28]. Another study focused on the role of redox imbalance/mitochondrial dysfunction and implicate interneuron subtypes in ACC in SZ pathophysiology [29].…”