Cited by 87Schizophrenia research and treatmentMental Health Research TopicsMental Health and Psychiatry

Pervasively Thinner Neocortex as a Transdiagnostic Feature of General Psychopathology

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Romer, Adrienne L., Elliott, Maxwell L., Knodt, Annchen R., Sison, Maria L., Ireland, David, Houts, Renate, Ramrakha, Sandhya, Poulton, Richie +5 more·2021·American Journal of Psychiatry

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Abstract

Objective: Neuroimaging research has revealed that structural brain alterations are common across broad diagnostic families of disorders rather than specific to a single psychiatric disorder. Such overlap in the structural brain correlates of mental disorders mirrors already well-documented phenotypic comorbidity of psychiatric symptoms and diagnoses, which can be indexed by a general psychopathology or p factor. The authors hypothesized that if general psychopathology drives the convergence of structural alterations common across disorders, then 1) there should be few associations unique to any one diagnostic family of disorders, and 2) associations with the p factor should overlap with those for the broader diagnostic families. Methods: Analyses were conducted on structural MRI and psychopathology data collected from 861 members of the population-representative Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study at age 45. Results: Study members with high scores across three broad diagnostic families of disorders (externalizing, internalizing, thought disorder) exhibited highly overlapping patterns of reduced global and widely distributed parcel-wise neocortical thickness. Study members with high p factor scores exhibited patterns of reduced global and parcel-wise neocortical thickness nearly identical to those associated with the three broad diagnostic families. Conclusions: A pattern of pervasively reduced neocortical thickness appears to be common across all forms of mental disorders and may represent a transdiagnostic feature of general psychopathology. As has been documented with regard to symptoms and diagnoses, the underlying brain structural correlates of mental disorders may not exhibit specificity, and the continued pursuit of such specific correlates may limit progress toward more effective strategies for etiological understanding, prevention, and intervention.

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Crossref · 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19090934

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  • Pervasively reduced neocortical thickness was recently found to be shared across psychotic and common mental disorders, representing a potentially transdiagnostic marker of general psychopathology (termed 'p factor').

    “For example, pervasively reduced neocortical thickness was recently found to be shared across psychotic and common mental disorders, representing a potentially transdiagnostic marker of general psychopathology (termed 'p factor') 222”

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Authors
Romer, A. L., Elliott, M. L., Knodt, A. R., Sison, M. L., Ireland, D., Houts, R., Ramrakha, S., Poulton, R., Keenan, R., Melzer, T. R., Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., & Hariri, A. R.
Affiliations
Duke University (US)
Corresponding author
Hariri, Ahmad R.
Venue
American Journal of Psychiatry
Published
2021-02-01
Volume
178
Issue
2
Pages
174-182
ISSN
  • 0002-953X (ISSN-L)
  • 1535-7228
OpenAlex
W3038214064
Cited by
87
References
41
Citations by year
2026: 6 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 14 · 2022: 22 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 6
FWCI
11.13
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • American Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (acceptedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Science Foundation (R01AG049789, 1106401, 1644868)
  • University of Otago
  • Jacobs Foundation (MR/P005918/1)
  • Medical Research Council (MR/P005918, P005918, MR/P005918/1, R01AG032282, P005918/1)
  • National Institute on Aging (R01AG032282, R01AG049789)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (F32MH124409)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Mental Health Research Topics
  • Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Mental Health and Psychiatry
Keywords
general psychopathology, p-factor, transdiagnostic features, brain structural changes, psychiatric comorbidity, externalizing disorders, internalizing disorders, thought disorder, Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Mental Disorders, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Psychopathology, Cohort Studies, Neocortex, Young Adult

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