Cortical patterning of abnormal morphometric similarity in psychosis is associated with brain expression of schizophrenia-related genes

Abstract

Despite significant research, the biological mechanisms underlying schizophrenia are still unclear. We shed light on structural brain differences in psychosis using an approach called morphometric similarity mapping, which quantifies the structural similarity between brain regions. Morphometric similarity was globally reduced in psychosis patients in three independent datasets, implying that patients’ brain regions were more differentiated from each other and less interconnected. Similarity was especially decreased in frontal and temporal regions. This anatomical pattern was correlated with expression of genes enriched for nervous system development and synaptic signaling and genes previously associated with schizophrenia and antipsychotic treatments. Therefore, we begin to see how combining genomics and imaging can give a more integrative understanding of schizophrenia, which might inform future treatments.