Unique morphometric features of the cerebellum and cerebellocerebral structural correlation between ASD and Schizophrenia

Summary

Chie Morimoto, Osamu Abe, Kiyoto Kasai and Shinsuke Koike at the University of Tokyo, and their colleagues showed significantly larger WM volume in the bilateral lobules VI and Crus I in the autism spectrum disorder (ASD) group than in schizophrenia and control groups. The study also showed, in the ASD group specifically, significant correlations in cerebellocerebral anatomical association.

Many studies using magnetic resonance imaging have shown atypical deviations of cerebellar morphology in ASD and schizophrenia, respectively. However, previous studies have focused on either ASD or schizophrenia exclusively and as a result, the extent to which there are morphological differences between these two conditions has not been definitively quantified. On the other hand, the cerebellum is engaged in a wide range of functions from motor to cognitive and affective processing in the reciprocal neural circuit with the cerebrum, and its functional localization for each cerebellar lobule depends on the patterns of input from and output to the cerebral regions. Therefore, although it can play a pivotal role in understanding the pathology of ASD and schizophrenia to elucidate the cerebellocerebral structural correlation pattern, the difference between these disorders has not been examined.

This study showed that considering biological differences, such as cerebellar morphometry and cerebellocerebral structural correlation patterns may be useful when determining diagnostic criteria and treatment for ASD and schizophrenia.

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