title: Increased Cerebellar Functional Connectivity With the Default-Mode Network in Unaffected Siblings of Schizophrenia Patients at Rest.
abstract: The default-mode network (DMN) is vital in the neurobiology of schizophrenia, and the cerebellum participates in the high-order cognitive network such as the DMN. However, the specific contribution of the cerebellum to the DMN abnormalities remains unclear in unaffected siblings of schizophrenia patients. Forty-six unaffected siblings of schizophrenia patients and 46 healthy controls were recruited for a resting-state scan. The images were analyzed using the functional connectivity (FC) method. The siblings showed significantly increased FCs between the left Crus I and the left superior medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), as well as between the lobule IX and the bilateral MPFC (orbital part) and right superior MPFC compared with the controls. No significantly decreased FC was observed in the siblings relative to the controls. The analyses were replicated in 49 first-episode, drug-naive patients with schizophrenia, and the results showed that the siblings and the patients shared increased FCs between the left Crus I and the left superior MPFC, as well as between the lobule IX and the left MPFC (orbital part) compared with the controls. These findings suggest that increased cerebellar-DMN connectivities emerge earlier than illness onset, which highlight the contribution of the cerebellum to the DMN alterations in unaffected siblings. The shared increased cerebellar-DMN connectivities between the patients and the siblings may be used as candidate endophenotypes for schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health of Hunan Province, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China; guowenbin76@163.com.
authors.forename: Wenbin
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan 610054, China;
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University; Nanning, Guangxi 530021, China.
authors.forename: Zhikun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University; Nanning, Guangxi 530021, China.
authors.forename: Guiying
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University; Nanning, Guangxi 530021, China.
authors.forename: Jianrong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University; Nanning, Guangxi 530021, China.
authors.forename: Liuyu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University; Nanning, Guangxi 530021, China.
authors.forename: Changqing
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health of Hunan Province, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan 410011, China;
authors.forename: Jingping
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D059907:Functional Neuroimaging / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000503:physiopathology*; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012146:Rest; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D035781:Siblings; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: cerebellum; default-mode network; functional connectivity; schizophrenia; unaffected siblings of schizophrenia patients