Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun 2;47(3):E209-E217.
doi: 10.1503/jpn.210178. Print 2022 May-Jun.

Childhood trauma and cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia: mediation by orbitofrontal cortex H-shaped sulci volume

Leilei Wang  1 , Yi Yin  1 , Wei Feng  1 , Yanfang Zhou  1 , Junchao Huang  1 , Ping Zhang  1 , Song Chen  1 , Hongzhen Fan  1 , Yimin Cui  1 , Xingguang Luo  1 , Shuping Tan  1 , Zhiren Wang  1 , Baopeng Tian  1 , Li Tian  1 , Chiang-Shan R Li  1 , Yunlong Tan  2
Affiliations

Childhood trauma and cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia: mediation by orbitofrontal cortex H-shaped sulci volume

Leilei Wang et al. J Psychiatry Neurosci. .

Abstract

Background: A line of evidence has shown that childhood trauma and patterns of H-shaped sulci in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) are associated with cognitive deficits in patients with schizophrenia. Studies have also suggested that childhood trauma is associated with OFC volumetrics. This study investigated the interrelationship between childhood trauma, OFC H-shaped sulci volume and cognitive function in patients with first-episode schizophrenia. We hypothesized that OFC H-shaped sulci volume would mediate the relationship between childhood trauma and cognitive function in patients with first-episode schizophrenia.

Methods: We recruited patients with first-episode schizophrenia (n = 63) and healthy controls (n = 48), and quantified OFC H-shaped sulci volumes with 3.0 T high-resolution MRI. We assessed cognitive function and childhood trauma experiences using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ).

Results: Patients with first-episode schizophrenia had smaller left OFC H-shaped sulci volumes, more severe childhood trauma experiences and worse cognitive function than healthy controls. CTQ total score and emotional and physical neglect subscores were negatively correlated with left OFC H-shaped sulci volume. CTQ total score and emotional neglect and sexual abuse subscores were negatively correlated with cognitive function in patients with first-episode schizophrenia. Interestingly, the CTQ total score and physical neglect subscore were positively correlated with cognitive function in healthy controls. Left OFC H-shaped sulci volume played a mediating role in CTQ emotional neglect subscore, CTQ total score and MCCB composite score.

Limitations: The small sample size and retrospective design need to be considered.

Conclusion: Childhood trauma might contribute to cognitive deficits in patients with first-episode schizophrenia by affecting left OFC H-shaped sulci volume. This finding can help in the design of strategies to improve cognitive function in patients with first-episode schizophrenia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation between childhood trauma and left OFC H-shaped sulci volume in patients with first-episode schizophrenia and healthy controls: (A) emotional neglect subscore; B) physical neglect subscore; (C) CTQ total score. Associations were significant at p < 0.05 after adjusting for age, sex, education level and total intracranial volume for PFES. CTQ = Childhood Trauma Questionnaire; HC = healthy controls; OFC = orbitofrontal cortex; PFES = patients with first-episode schizophrenia.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Model 1, path diagram of the mediation model (x = emotional neglect; y = MCCB total score; left OFC H-shaped sulci volume as mediator). Paths C’ and C represent the direct and total effects between emotional neglect and left OFC H-shaped sulci volume. Path AB represents the mediation effect and was significant at p < 0.05. CI = confidence interval; MCCB = MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery; OFC = orbitofrontal cortex.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Model 2, path diagram of the mediation model (x = CTQ total score; y = MCCB total score; left OFC H-shaped sulci volume as mediator). Paths C’ and C represent the direct and total effects between CTQ total score and left OFC H-shaped sulci volume. Path AB represents the mediation effect and is significant at p < 0.05. CI = confidence interval; CTQ = Childhood Trauma Questionnaire; MCCB = MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery; OFC = orbitofrontal cortex.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Parsons CE, Stark EA, Young KS, et al. . Understanding the human parental brain: a critical role of the orbitofrontal cortex. Soc Neurosci 2013;8:525–43. - PubMed
    1. Walton E, Hibar DP, van Erp TGM, et al. . Prefrontal cortical thinning links to negative symptoms in schizophrenia via the ENIGMA consortium. Psychol Med 2018;48:82–94. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Cropley VL, Bartholomeusz CF, Wu P, et al. . Investigation of orbitofrontal sulcogyral pattern in chronic schizophrenia. J Psychiatr Res 2015;234:280–3. - PubMed
    1. Lavoie S, Bartholomeuz CF, Nelson B, et al. . Sulcogyral pattern and sulcal count of the orbitofrontal cortex in individuals at ultra high risk for psychosis. J Schizophr Res 2014;154:93–9. - PubMed
    1. Takahashi T, Nakamura M, Nishikawa Y, et al. . Decreased number of orbital sulci in schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging 2016;250:29–32. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources