Schizophrenia

Question 1

Gross changes in schizophrenia

Answer 1

• decrease in brain weight, brain length and volume of cerebral hemispheres
• enlargement of the lateral ventricles, especially the temporal horns
• reduced tissue volume in the thalamus, hippocampus, amygdala, parahippocampal gyrus
• white matter reductions in the parahippocampal gyrus or hippocampus
• increased incidence of cavum septi pellucidi seen
• basal ganglia volume reduction
• planum temporale on the posterior superior surface of the superior temporal gyrus- left is larger than right

Question 2

Histological changes in schizophrenia

Answer 2

• no evidence of astrogliosis seen

- increased neuronal density and decreased size

Question 3

White matter hyperintensities

Answer 3

• strongly associated with mood disorder

- confer a poor prognosis in depression and bipolar disorder

Question 4

Lithium

Answer 4

• treatment increases cortical grey matter volume suggesting that lithium is neurotrophic
• lithium may also enhance neurogenesis and inhibit apoptosis

Question 5

Antidepressants

Answer 5

• may affect neuronal morphology
• help regenerate monoaminergic axons
• promote hippocampal neurogenesis
• revent loss of dendritic spines in animal models

Question 6

Wernicke’s encaphalopathy

Answer 6

• characterised by degenerative changes including gliosis and small hemorrhages in structures surrounding the third ventricle and aqueduct
• mamillary bodies, hypothalamus, mediodorsal thalamic nucleus, colliculi and midbrain tegmentum
• cerebellar atrophy

Question 7

Uncomplicated alcoholism

Answer 7

• brain shrinkage seen
• largely accounted for by the loss of white matter
• some of this damage may be reversible

Question 8

Alcohol related neuronal loss

Answer 8

• documented in specific regions of cerebral cortex

- superior frontal association cortex, the hypothalamus, supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei and cerebellum

Question 9

Autism

Answer 9

• Hypoplasia of cerebellar vermis and cerebellar hemispheres is documented
• Purkinje cell count in the cerebellum is significantly lower
• sometime increased cortical volume- may be related to less neuronal pruning