Normative modelling of molecular-based functional circuits captures clinical heterogeneity transdiagnostically in psychiatric patients

Commun Biol. 2024 Jun 5;7(1):689. doi: 10.1038/s42003-024-06391-3.

Abstract

Advanced methods such as REACT have allowed the integration of fMRI with the brain's receptor landscape, providing novel insights transcending the multiscale organisation of the brain. Similarly, normative modelling has allowed translational neuroscience to move beyond group-average differences and characterise deviations from health at an individual level. Here, we bring these methods together for the first time. We used REACT to create functional networks enriched with the main modulatory, inhibitory, and excitatory neurotransmitter systems and generated normative models of these networks to capture functional connectivity deviations in patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder (BPD), and ADHD. Substantial overlap was seen in symptomatology and deviations from normality across groups, but these could be mapped into a common space linking constellations of symptoms through to underlying neurobiology transdiagnostically. This work provides impetus for developing novel biomarkers that characterise molecular- and systems-level dysfunction at the individual level, facilitating the transition towards mechanistically targeted treatments.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / diagnostic imaging
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / physiopathology
  • Bipolar Disorder / physiopathology
  • Brain / diagnostic imaging
  • Brain / physiopathology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging*
  • Male
  • Mental Disorders / diagnostic imaging
  • Mental Disorders / physiopathology
  • Middle Aged
  • Models, Neurological
  • Nerve Net / diagnostic imaging
  • Nerve Net / physiopathology
  • Schizophrenia* / diagnostic imaging
  • Schizophrenia* / physiopathology
  • Young Adult