Method
2.1 Subjects
Twenty-five subjects diagnosed with first-episode schizophrenia were recruited for the present study. Two subjects did not complete scanning, and 3 subjects were excluded because of poor image quality. Therefore, 20 patients (10 males and 10 females) were ultimately included in the patient group, with a mean age of 24.45 years (SD = 5.51) and an average of 11.95 years of education (SD = 2.61). Patients received atypical antipsychotics at an average daily dose of 285 mg/day (SD = 108.94) of chlorpromazine equivalents (CPZ; [10]). Patients had not received antipsychotic medicine prior to scanning. All patients met ICD-10 criteria for schizophrenia and had received a Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) total score > = 60. Individuals with any history of the following were excluded: (1) serious somatic disorders; (2) central nervous system diseases; (3) alcohol or substance abuse; (4) extreme agitation; or (5) a restricted MRI examination. Ten of the 20 patients received a follow-up examination and brain scan after 8 weeks of treatment, and one patient did not complete the scanning. Therefore, 9 subjects (4 males and 5 females) with an average age of 23.00 (SD = 4.80) and an average of 11.22 years of education (SD = 2.64) were included in the follow-up study. The patients were treated with a second generation antipsychotic at an average of 300 mg/day (SD = 150.00) of CPZ equivalents (Clozapine n = 1, Quetiapine n = 6, Aripiprazole n = 1, Olanzapine n = 1). Psychopathological symptoms were rated using the PANSS [11]. Twenty-five healthy controls were also recruited, and one of these subjects was excluded because of poor image quality. Thus, 24 subjects were entered into the healthy group, which included 13 males and 11 females, having a mean age of 24.79 years (SD = 6.11) and an average of 13.17 years of education (SD = 2.16). None has any lifetime history of neurological or medical illness, head injury or substance abuse. Shanghai Mental Health Center- Institutional Review Board (SMHC-IRB) approved this study (Approval number: 2011-03R). All patients and controls provided written informed consent to participate in the study