Metabolic disconnection between the mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus and cortical Brodmann's areas of the left hemisphere in schizophrenia.

Abstract

The authors' goal was to examine interregional correlations of thalamocortical metabolic activity during a verbal learning task in schizophrenia. They used [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography in 41 unmedicated patients with schizophrenia and 59 normal comparison subjects. A metabolic disconnection was observed in patients with schizophrenia in the left hemisphere between the mediodorsal nucleus and widespread frontotemporal cortical regions, and stronger-than-normal intercorrelations were found between the pulvinar and superior temporal, selected parietal, posterior cingulate, and occipital areas. Deficits in the functional interrelationships between the left frontotemporal cortices and the left mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus complement inferences from postmortem and magnetic resonance imaging volumetric studies identifying a thalamic diathesis in schizophrenia.