title: Diminished auditory sensory gating during active auditory verbal hallucinations.
abstract: Auditory sensory gating, assessed in a paired-click paradigm, indicates the extent to which incoming stimuli are filtered, or "gated", in auditory cortex. Gating is typically computed as the ratio of the peak amplitude of the event related potential (ERP) to a second click (S2) divided by the peak amplitude of the ERP to a first click (S1). Higher gating ratios are purportedly indicative of incomplete suppression of S2 and considered to represent sensory processing dysfunction. In schizophrenia, hallucination severity is positively correlated with gating ratios, and it was hypothesized that a failure of sensory control processes early in auditory sensation (gating) may represent a larger system failure within the auditory data stream; resulting in auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH). EEG data were collected while patients (N=12) with treatment-resistant AVH pressed a button to indicate the beginning (AVH-on) and end (AVH-off) of each AVH during a paired click protocol. For each participant, separate gating ratios were computed for the P50, N100, and P200 components for each of the AVH-off and AVH-on states. AVH trait severity was assessed using the Psychotic Symptoms Rating Scales AVH Total score (PSYRATS). The results of a mixed model ANOVA revealed an overall effect for AVH state, such that gating ratios were significantly higher during the AVH-on state than during AVH-off for all three components. PSYRATS score was significantly and negatively correlated with N100 gating ratio only in the AVH-off state. These findings link onset of AVH with a failure of an empirically-defined auditory inhibition system, auditory sensory gating, and pave the way for a sensory gating model of AVH.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, 1 University of New Mexico, MSC 09 5030, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA. Electronic address: rjthoma@salud.unm.edu.
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Thoma
authors.affiliation: University of New Mexico, Biology Department PREP Program, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meier
authors.affiliation: The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Jon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Houck
authors.affiliation: The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Psychology Clinical Neuroscience Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Vincent P
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.affiliation: The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Jeffrey D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Lewine
authors.affiliation: The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, 1 University of New Mexico, MSC 09 5030, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Vince
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Calhoun
authors.affiliation: The Mind Research Network and the Lovelace Family of Companies, 1101 Yale NE, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stephen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D005071:Evoked Potentials; D005260:Female; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D055139:Sensory Gating / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: Auditory processing; Auditory sensory gating; Auditory verbal hallucinations; EEG; ERP; Hallucinations; Schizophrenia