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EEG differences in monozygotic twins discordant and concordant for schizophrenia
Author(s) -
Stassen Hans H.,
Coppola Richard,
Gottesman Irving I.,
Torrey E. Fuller,
Kuny Stephan,
Rickler Kenneth C.,
Hell Daniel
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
psychophysiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.661
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1469-8986
pISSN - 0048-5772
DOI - 10.1017/s0048577299970713
Subject(s) - concordance , psychology , monozygotic twin , schizophrenia (object oriented programming) , electroencephalography , pathological , trait , psychosis , developmental psychology , audiology , psychiatry , medicine , genetics , biology , computer science , programming language
In an electroencephalographic (EEG) study of 27 pairs of monozygotic (MZ) twins discordant for schizophrenia, 13 pairs of MZ twins concordant for schizophrenia, 40 pairs of healthy MZ twins, and 91 healthy, unrelated subjects with repeated assessments, we investigated (a) the trait quality of brainwave patterns with respect to interindividual differences, intraindividual stability over time, and within‐pair MZ concordance; (b) the EEG characteristics that enable discrimination between affected and unaffected individuals; and (c) the EEG characteristics that reflect the severity of illness. In comparison with healthy control subjects, the MZ twins who were discordant and concordant for schizophrenia exhibited a much lower within‐pair EEG concordance, so that EEG abnormalities associated with schizophrenia and manifested differently in the co‐twins concordant for schizophrenia seemed to reflect nongenetic, pathological developments of genetically identical brains.