Research Article

Small gray matter volume in orbitofrontal cortex in Prader-Willi syndrome: A voxel-based MRI study

  1. Kaeko Ogura1,†,*,
  2. Toshikatsu Fujii1,
  3. Nobuhito Abe1,
  4. Yoshiyuki Hosokai1,
  5. Mayumi Shinohara1,
  6. Shoki Takahashi2,
  7. Etsuro Mori1

Article first published online: 28 JUL 2010

DOI: 10.1002/hbm.21089

Issue

Human Brain Mapping

Human Brain Mapping

Volume 32, Issue 7, pages 1059–1066, July 2011

Additional Information

How to Cite

Ogura, K., Fujii, T., Abe, N., Hosokai, Y., Shinohara, M., Takahashi, S. and Mori, E. (2011), Small gray matter volume in orbitofrontal cortex in Prader-Willi syndrome: A voxel-based MRI study. Hum. Brain Mapp., 32: 1059–1066. doi: 10.1002/hbm.21089

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Behavioral Neurology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan

  2. 2

    Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan

  1. †

    Tel: +81-22-717-7358; Fax: +81-22-717-7360

*Department of Behavioral Neurology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, 2-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 10 JUN 2011
  2. Article first published online: 28 JUL 2010
  3. Manuscript Accepted: 12 APR 2010
  4. Manuscript Revised: 21 JAN 2010
  5. Manuscript Received: 20 AUG 2009

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Keywords:

  • Prader-Willi syndrome;
  • neurodevelopmental disorder;
  • abnormal eating behavior;
  • compulsive behavior;
  • voxel-based morphometry;
  • orbitofrontal cortex

Abstract

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a genetically determined neurodevelopmental disorder presenting with behavioral symptoms including hyperphagia, disinhibition, and compulsive behavior. The behavioral problems in individuals with PWS are strikingly similar to those in patients with frontal pathologies, particularly those affecting the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). However, neuroanatomical abnormalities in the frontal lobe have not been established in PWS. The aim of this study was to look, using volumetric analysis, for morphological changes in the frontal lobe, especially the OFC, of the brains of individuals with PWS. Twelve adults with PWS and 13 age- and gender-matched control subjects participated in structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. The whole-brain images were segmented and normalized to a standard stereotactic space. Regional gray matter volumes were compared between the PWS group and the control group using voxel-based morphometry. The PWS subjects showed small gray-matter volume in several regions, including the OFC, caudate nucleus, inferior temporal gyrus, precentral gyrus, supplementary motor area, postcentral gyrus, and cerebellum. The small gray-matter volume in the OFC remained significant in a separate analysis that included total gray matter volume as a covariate. These preliminary findings suggest that the neurobehavioral symptoms in individuals with PWS are related to structural brain abnormalities in these areas. Hum Brain Mapp, 2011. © 2010 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

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