title: Impulsive-antisocial psychopathic traits linked to increased volume and functional connectivity within prefrontal cortex.
abstract: Psychopathy is a personality disorder characterized by callous lack of empathy, impulsive antisocial behavior, and criminal recidivism. Studies of brain structure and function in psychopathy have frequently identified abnormalities in the prefrontal cortex. However, findings have not yet converged to yield a clear relationship between specific subregions of prefrontal cortex and particular psychopathic traits. We performed a multimodal neuroimaging study of prefrontal cortex volume and functional connectivity in psychopathy, using a sample of adult male prison inmates (N = 124). We conducted volumetric analyses in prefrontal subregions, and subsequently assessed resting-state functional connectivity in areas where volume was related to psychopathy severity. We found that overall psychopathy severity and Factor 2 scores (which index the impulsive/antisocial traits of psychopathy) were associated with larger prefrontal subregion volumes, particularly in the medial orbitofrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Furthermore, Factor 2 scores were also positively correlated with functional connectivity between several areas of the prefrontal cortex. The results were not attributable to age, race, IQ, substance use history, or brain volume. Collectively, these findings provide evidence for co-localized increases in prefrontal cortex volume and intra-prefrontal functional connectivity in relation to impulsive/antisocial psychopathic traits.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.|Neuroscience Training Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53705, USA.
authors.forename: Cole
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Korponay
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.|Neuroscience Training Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53705, USA.
authors.forename: Maia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pujara
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Deming
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.|Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MI 63121, USA.
authors.forename: Carissa
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Philippi
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
authors.forename: Jean
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Decety
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA.
authors.forename: David S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Kosson
authors.affiliation: The Non-profit MIND Research Network, An Affiliate of Lovelace Biomedical and Environmental Research Institute, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.|Departments of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Law, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA.
authors.forename: Kent A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Kiehl
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koenigs
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D057237:Criminals; D004645:Empathy / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size / Q000502:physiology; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; functional connectivity; medial orbitofrontal cortex; psychopathy; volume