Dysconnectivity of Multiple Brain Networks in Schizophrenia: A Meta-Analysis of Resting-State Functional Connectivity

Background: Seed-based studies on resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC) in schizophrenia have shown disrupted connectivity involving a number of brain networks; however, the results have been controversial.

Methods: We conducted a meta-analysis based on independent component analysis (ICA) brain templates to evaluate dysconnectivity within resting-state brain networks in patients with schizophrenia. Seventy-six rsFC studies from 70 publications with 2,588 schizophrenia patients and 2,567 healthy controls (HCs) were included in the present meta-analysis. The locations and activation effects of significant intergroup comparisons were extracted and classified based on the ICA templates. Then, multilevel kernel density analysis was used to integrate the results and control bias.

Results: Compared with HCs, significant hypoconnectivities were observed between the seed regions and the areas in the auditory network (left insula), core network (right superior temporal cortex), default mode network (right medial prefrontal cortex, and left precuneus and anterior cingulate cortices), self-referential network (right superior temporal cortex), and somatomotor network (right precentral gyrus) in schizophrenia patients. No hyperconnectivity between the seed regions and any other areas within the networks was detected in patients, compared with the connectivity in HCs.

Conclusions: Decreased rsFC within the self-referential network and default mode network might play fundamental roles in the malfunction of information processing, while the core network might act as a dysfunctional hub of regulation. Our meta-analysis is consistent with diffuse hypoconnectivities as a dysregulated brain network model of schizophrenia.