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. 2017 May 30:263:44-47.
doi: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2017.02.007. Epub 2017 Feb 21.

Cortical complexity in bipolar disorder applying a spherical harmonics approach

Igor Nenadic  1 , Rachel A Yotter  2 , Maren Dietzek  3 , Kerstin Langbein  3 , Heinrich Sauer  3 , Christian Gaser  4
Affiliations

Cortical complexity in bipolar disorder applying a spherical harmonics approach

Igor Nenadic et al. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. .

Abstract

Recent studies using surface-based morphometry of structural magnetic resonance imaging data have suggested that some changes in bipolar disorder (BP) might be neurodevelopmental in origin. We applied a novel analysis of cortical complexity based on fractal dimensions in high-resolution structural MRI scans of 18 bipolar disorder patients and 26 healthy controls. Our region-of-interest based analysis revealed increases in fractal dimensions (in patients relative to controls) in left lateral orbitofrontal cortex and right precuneus, and decreases in right caudal middle frontal, entorhinal cortex, and right pars orbitalis, and left fusiform and posterior cingulate cortices. While our analysis is preliminary, it suggests that early neurodevelopmental pathologies might contribute to bipolar disorder, possibly through genetic mechanisms.

Keywords: Bipolar disorder; Cortical complexity; Fractal dimension; Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); Morphometry; Spherical harmonics.

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