CHANGES IN REGIONAL CEREBRAL METABOLIC-RATE WITH AGE IN SCHIZOPHRENICS AND NORMAL ADULTS

We sought to test the hypothesis that age-related neuronal cell death and consequent cortical atrophy ate associated with glutamate activity at N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, and that this activity is decreased in the temporal cortex and excessive in the frontal cortex of schizophrenic patients. Eighteen male schizophrenics, aged 21 - 45 years, without a history of neuroleptic use, and 22 normal male controls, aged 19-42 years, were studied with 18-fluoro-2-deoxyglucose positron emission tomographic brain imaging. Consistent with the hypothesis, a multivariate analysis revealed group differences in the pattern of age-related changes in glucose metabolic rate (GMR) in NMDA receptor-rich brain regions. Controls had significantly lower slopes of GMR plotted against age than schizophrenic in the caudate nucleus and medial and lateral temporal regions.