Faculty Bibliography

Frontal/posterior ratios of cerebral glucose metabolism as determined by positron emission tomography were significantly lower in 13 chronic schizophrenic patients than in eight normal control subjects, as were absolute metabolic rates in both the frontal and posterior regions. The differences were not accounted for by cerebral atrophy

The metabolic patterns of correlation among brain images obtained during resting conditions and during an eye tracking task were investigated in 12 controls and 18 chronic schizophrenics using positron emission tomography (PET) and deoxy[11C]glucose. Analyses of the interaction between brain regions revealed highly significant differences between groups under both test conditions. Schizophrenics showed lower correlations between anterior and posterior areas and between thalamus and cortical areas than the normals and less change between the baseline and the task than the normals. The schizophrenic subjects showed derangements in the pattern of interactions among brain areas, both under baseline and under activation as compared to the control group

The effects of d-amphetamine (0.5 mg/kg PO) on regional cerebral glucose utilization were measured with Positron Emission Tomography (PET). Subjects included ten chronic schizophrenics and six controls who received amphetamine, and six chronic schizophrenics and nine controls who received placebo or no treatment. Amphetamine decreased glucose metabolism in all regions studied (frontal, temporal, and striatal) in normal and schizophrenic subjects. The metabolic effects of amphetamine were correlated with plasma level of the drug. Cortical atrophy was associated with a blunted metabolic response