The fact that insular thinning is already present at early phases of the illness and is independent of intervening variables offers evidence for the potential of these changes to be a biological marker of the illness. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“Voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs) play a major role during the

development of the central nervous system (CNS). Ca2+ influx via VGCCs regulates axonal growth and neuronal migration as well as synaptic plasticity. Specifically, L-type VGCCs have been well characterized Bucladesine in vivo to be involved in the formation and refinement of the connections within the CA3 region of the hippocampus. The majority of the growth, formation, and refinement in the CNS occurs during the third trimester of human pregnancy. An equivalent developmental time period in rodents occurs during the first 2 weeks of post-natal life, and the expression pattern of L-type VGCCs during this time period has not been well characterized. In this study,

we show that Ca(v)1.2 channels are more highly expressed during this developmental period compared to adolescence (post-natal day 30) and that L-type VGCCs significantly contribute to the overall Ca2+ MX69 supplier currents. These findings suggest that L-type VGCCs are functionally expressed during the crucial developmental period. (C) 2013 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“The aim of the present study was to investigate whether volumetric abnormalities of the caudate nuclei predate the onset of

psychotic illness. Caudate nuclei volume (CNVs), excluding the tail, were measured using region-of-interest (ROI) tracing of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans acquired on a 1.5 T scanner. Subjects included 39 individuals deemed at ultra-high risk of psychosis who converted to psychosis (UHR-P) after initial MRI scanning; 39 matched individuals at ultra-high risk who did not convert to psychosis (UHR-NP); and 39 matched BX-795 healthy controls. All subjects were neuroleptic-naive. After adjusting CNVs for intracranial volume (ICV), univariate analyses of variance and repeated measures analyses of variance were undertaken to examine the relationship of CNVs to psychosis transition and to family history of psychosis. Pearson’s correlations were used to investigate the relationship of psychopathological scores to CNVs. CNVs did not differ significantly between UHR individuals and healthy controls, and there was no significant difference between converters and non-converters to psychosis. In the UHR group, presence of family history of psychosis was not related to CNVs. There was no correlation between CNVs and either positive or negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Significant associations were found between larger CNV and increased errors on a spatial working memory task but better verbal fluency performance.