A research group including Associate Professor Naohiro Okada and Professor Kiyoto Kasai of the Graduate School of Medicine at the University of Tokyo and Center Director Atsushi Nishida of the Research Center for Social Science and Medicine at the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Medical Science, conducted brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) on a total of 100 individuals including patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls as well as over 200 adolescents participating in the Tokyo Teen Cohort study. The objective was to investigate the characteristics of subregions in the globus pallidus (external and internal segments).
The results revealed that in patients with schizophrenia, the volume of the external segment was significantly increased compared to the internal segment, relative to healthy controls. Furthermore, in schizophrenia, a stronger functional connectivity was found between the left external segment and the lateral occipitoparietal cortex, which is involved in visuospatial processing. Additionally, the external and internal segments showed abnormal functional connectivity with different brain regions, suggesting the possibility that the two are involved in distinct neural circuits.
In the analysis targeting adolescents, it was found that the greater the number of psychotic experiences reported, the larger the volume of the left external segment. Moreover, in children with psychotic experiences, functional connectivity was stronger between the left external segment, and a brain region called the lingual gyrus, which is involved in visuospatial processing.
These results partially align with the characteristics observed in schizophrenia, suggesting that changes in the external segment of the globus pallidus may be associated not only with post-onset conditions but also with the pre-onset stage.
Prior basic research had shown that the internal and external segments of the globus pallidus are associated with different functions and brain circuits. While characteristics of globus pallidus volume in patients with schizophrenia and adolescents with psychotic experiences had been reported previously, this study systematically clarified the characteristics of globus pallidus subregions across the schizophrenia spectrum.
This achievement is expected to contribute to the development of basic research that will not only deepen the understanding of the pathology of schizophrenia, but also lead to future early risk assessment, elucidation of onset mechanisms, and the exploration of new therapeutic targets. The study was published in the online edition of Molecular Psychiatry.
Provided by the University of Tokyo
Journal Information
Publication: Molecular Psychiatry
Title: The role of the globus pallidus subregions in the schizophrenia spectrum continuum
DOI: 10.1038/s41380-026-03729-7
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