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Background: Bipolar disorder (BD) might be associated in disturbances in brain networks. However, little is known about the abnormalities in structural brain connectivity which might be related to vulnerability to BD and predictive of the emergence of manic symptoms. No previous study has investigated the effect of subthreshold syndromes on structural dysconnectivity in offspring of parents with BD (BDoff).Methods: We investigated diffusion weighted images of 70 BDoff and 48 healthy controls (HC). Nineteen of the 70 BDoff had presented with subthreshold syndromes indicating a clinical high-risk (BDoff-CHR) and other 51 BDoff had no such history (BDoff-non-CHR). Global and regional network properties, rich club organization and inter-regional connectivity in BDoff and healthy controls were investigated using graph analytical methods and network-based-statistics (NBS).Results: Global properties of WM networks appeared to be intact in BDoff-CHR and BDoff-non-CHR. However, decreased regional connectivity in right occipito-parietal areas and cerebellum was a common feature of both BDoff groups. Importantly, decreased interregional connectivity between nodes in right and left prefrontal regions, nodes in right prefrontal lobe and right temporal lobe and nodes in left occipital area and left cerebellum were evident in BDoff-CHR but not BDoff-non-CHR.Limitations: The cross-sectional nature of the study was the main consideration.Conclusion: Decreased regional connectivity in right posterior brain regions might be related to vulnerability to BD. On the other hand, interregional dysconnectivity in anterior frontal and limbic regions and left posterior brain regions might be evident in individuals genetically at risk for developing BD who had experienced subthreshold mood symptoms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Individuals with bipolar disorder (BD) have a higher prevalence of obesity and metabolic syndrome (MetS) compared with the general population. Obesity and MetS are associated with cognitive deficits and brain imaging abnormalities in the general population. Obesity and components of MetS might potentially associate with neuroimaging and neurocognitive findings in BD. Methods: A literature search of studies investigating the association between obesity (and other components of MetS) and neurocognitive and neuroimaging findings in BD was conducted. In addition to a systematic review, a random-effects meta-analysis was conducted when sufficient data were available. Results: Twenty-three studies were included in the current systematic review. Overweight/obese patients were significantly associated with impaired neurocognition compared normal weight individuals with BD (d = 0.37). The most robust association between obesity and cognitive deficits in BD was observed in the cognitive subdomain of executive functions (d = 0.61). There was also evidence for a significant relationship between cognitive impairment in BD and other components of MetS including hypertension, dyslipidemia, and diabetes. Overweight/obese individuals with BD had more pronounced brain imaging abnormalities than normal weight individuals with BD. Conclusions: Obesity and related cardiovascular risk factors significantly are associated with more severe cognitive and brain imaging abnormalities in BD. Medical co-morbidities can potentially contribute to functional decline observed in some patients throughout the course of BD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To date, a small number of studies have investigated cortical thickness, cortical surface area, and subcortical volume abnormalities in first-episode, untreated patients with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). The findings of previous studies are not entirely consistent. Previous studies did not match first-episode, untreated patients with MDD to controls regarding body mass index (BMI) and smoking, which could contribute to the inconsistency of results. The aim of the current study was to examine whether morphological abnormalities are present in first-episode and untreated MDD patients in comparison with well-matched controls, particularly concerning BMI and smoking status. Method: Twenty first-episode, untreated patients with MDD were enrolled in the study along with 20 healthy controls (HC) matched for age, education, sex, BMI and smoking status. Thickness and area of the cortex and subcortical volumes were measured using surface-based morphometry implemented with Freesurfer (v5.3.0). Results: There were no significant differences in cortical thickness, surface area, and subcortical volumes between the firstepisode, untreated patients with MDD and HC groups. Conclusion: This study provides evidence that cortical thickness, cortical surface area, and subcortical volumes might be normal in first-episode untreated patients with MDD in comparison with well-matched controls, particularly for BMI and smoking status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We aimed to examine the whole-brain white matter connectivity and local topology of reward system nodes in patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and unaffected siblings, relative to healthy comparison individuals. Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging scans were acquired from 18 patients with AUD, 15 unaffected siblings of AUD patients and 15 healthy controls. Structural networks were examined using network-based statistic and connectomic analysis. Connectomic analysis showed a significant ordered difference in normalized rich club organization (AUD < Siblings < Controls). We also found rank ordered differences (Control > Sibling > AUD) for both nodal clustering coefficient and nodal local efficiency in reward system nodes, particularly left caudate, right putamen and left hippocampus. Network-based statistic analyses showed that AUD group had significantly weaker connectivity than controls in the right hemisphere, mostly in the edges connecting putamen and hippocampus with other brain regions. Our results suggest that reward system network abnormalities, especially in subcortical structures, and impairments in rich-club organization might be related to the familial predisposition for AUD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The purpose of the study is to examine saccadic eye movements, and the relationship with motor functions based on the cerebellar connection among individuals with ultra‐high‐risk of psychosis and bipolar disorder (UHR‐P, UHR‐BD) and healthy controls (HC). Method: The study included 20 UHR‐P (mean age 21.95±3.38), 20 UHR‐BD (mean age 21.45±4.27), and 19 HC (mean age 24.84±3.95). Participants had been selected from cases clinical‐high‐risk criteria in interviews made with The Structured Interview of Psychosis Risk Syndromes (SIPS) and Bipolar Prodrome Symptom Interview and Scale (BPSS). Correct and incorrect count, amplitude and latency of anti‐saccade were used to evaluate eye movements. Eye movement data were recorded from the right eye using an EyeLink 1000 Plus eye‐tracker. In addition, Brief Motor Scale (BMS) was used to evaluate motor functions. Result: The number of correct saccade of anti‐saccade showed a significant difference between HC and UHR‐BD (p = 0.021). The Correct anti‐saccades were strongly correlated with motor function in UHR‐BD (r = ‐0.754, p<0.000). There was a moderate positive correlation between incorrect responses of anti‐saccade and motor function in UHR‐BD. (r = 0.455, p = 0.044). Motor functions indicated statistically significant differences between HC and high‐risk groups (p = 0.002 and p< 0.000). No significant relationship was found between anti‐saccade latency and amplitude and motor functions. (p> 0.05). Conclusion: We indicated that patients with ultra‐high risk had saccadic inhibition and motor coordination‐sequencing problems. This may be related to the dysfunctions in the cerebellum. The results are preliminary data of an ongoing study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clinical diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be conceptualized as the extreme end of the distribution of subclinical autistic traits related to genetic susceptibility factors (broad autism phenotype (BAP)) in the general population. Subclinical autistic traits are significantly more common among unaffected first-degree relatives of probands with autism. However, there is a significant heterogeneity of autistic traits in family members of individuals with ASD and severity of autistic traits are not significantly different from controls in the majority of these relatives. The current study investigated the heterogeneity of autistic traits using latent class analysis (LCA) of the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) ratings of 673 parents of children with ASD and 147 parents of typically developing children. Two distinct subgroups, including a "low-scoring" and a "high-scorer (BAP)" groups, were found. In comparison to control parents, a significantly larger proportion (21.1% vs. 7.5%) of parents of ASD were members of BAP group. Communication subscale made a distinctive contribution to the separation of high and low-scoring groups ( d = 2.77). Further studies investigating neurobiological and genetic biomarkers and stability of these two subgroups over time are important for understanding the nature of autistic traits in the general population. Autism Res 2017, 10: 321-326. © 2016 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]