Project Summary

Jean Theberge, Ph.D. (Young Investigator 2008) of St. Joseph's Health Care – London, proposes to use Lorentz imaging and an MRI scanner with a high field strength to refine our ability to discern abnormal patterns of activity in the default network of the brain in patients experiencing a first episode of schizophrenia. Dr. Theberge hypothesizes that when compared to healthy subjects, patients with first episode schizophrenia will demonstrate abnormal patterns of brain connectivity in the resting-state. This work is important in validating the current theories regarding the nature of the physiological problem in the brain of patient with schizophrenia while using a non-invasive imaging technique. The direct observation of slow fluctuations of brain activation at rest opens a new window on the abnormalities of neurocircuitry found in schizophrenia.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia\First-Episode Psychosis

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