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The British Journal of Psychiatry (2004) 184: 128-135
© 2004 The Royal College of Psychiatrists

Language activation in monozygotic twins discordant for schizophrenia

Iris E. C. Sommer, MD, Nick F. Ramsey, PhD and René C. W. Mandl, MSc

Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience Psychiatry Department,University Medical Center, Utrecht

Clarine J. Van Oel, PhD

Department of Public Health, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam

Renée S. Kahn, MD PhD

Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry,University Medical Center,Utrecht, The Netherlands

Correspondence: Dr Iris Sommer, Rudolf Magnus Institute of Neuroscience Psychiatry Department, University Medical Center Utrecht, Heidelberglaan 100, 3584CX Utrecht, The Netherlands. Tel: 30 2508352; fax: 30 2505443; e-mail: I.Sommer{at}azu.nl

Declaration of interest None.

Background In previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies, participants with schizophrenia showed decreased language lateralisation, resulting from increased activation of the right hemisphere compared with controls.

Aim To determine whether decreased lateralisation and increased right cerebral language activation constitute genetic predispositions for schizophrenia.

Method Language activation was measured using fMRI in 12 right-handed monozygotic twin pairs discordant for schizophrenia and12 healthy right-handed monozygotic twinpairswhowere twin pairs who were matched for gender, age and education.

Results Language lateralisation was decreased in discordanttwin pairs compared withthe healthy twin pairs. The groups did notdiffer in activation of the language-related areas of the left hemisphere, but language-related activation in the right hemisphere was activationinthe significantly higher in the discordanttwin pairs than in the healthy pairs. Within the discordanttwin pairs, language lateralisation was not significantly different between patients with schizophrenia and their co-twins.

Conclusions Decreased language lateralisation may constitute a genetic predisposition for schizophrenia.


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