title: Working memory and attention deficits in adolescent offspring of schizophrenia or bipolar patients: comparing vulnerability markers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Working memory deficits abound in schizophrenia and attention deficits have been documented in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Adolescent offspring of patients may inherit vulnerabilities in brain circuits that subserve these cognitive domains. Here we assess impairments in offspring of schizophrenia (SCZ-Offspring) or bipolar (BP-Offspring) patients compared to controls (HC) with no family history of mood or psychotic disorders to the second degree.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three groups (n=100 subjects; range: 10-20 yrs) of HC, SCZ-Offspring and BP-Offspring gave informed consent. Working memory was assessed using a delayed spatial memory paradigm with two levels of delay (2s & 12s); sustained attention processing was assessed using the Continuous Performance Task-Identical Pairs version.
  
  
  RESULTS
  SCZ-Offspring (but not BP-Offspring) showed impairments in working memory (relative to HC) at the longer memory delay indicating a unique deficit. Both groups showed reduced sensitivity during attention but only BP-Offspring significantly differed from controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results suggest unique (working memory/dorsal frontal cortex) and potentially overlapping (attention/fronto-striatal cortex) vulnerability pathways in adolescent offspring of patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Working memory and attention assessments in these offspring may assist in the clinical characterization of the adolescents vulnerable to SCZ or BP.
authors.affiliation: Dept of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience, Wayne State University SOM, Detroit, MI 48301, USA. vdiwadka@med.wayne.edu
authors.forename: Vaibhav A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Diwadkar
authors.forename: Dhruman
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Goradia
authors.forename: Avinash
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hosanagar
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mermon
authors.forename: Debra M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Montrose
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Birmaher
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Axelson
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rajarathinem
authors.forename: Luay
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Haddad
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Amirsadri
authors.forename: Caroline
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zajac-Benitez
authors.forename: Usha
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Rajan
authors.forename: Matcheri S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Keshavan
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology; D015415:Biomarkers; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000523:psychology; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D012307:Risk Factors; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers