Stage-dependent patterns of cognitive network connectivity in early psychosis

作者：XiaoChen Tang, YanYan Wei, Jiaoyan Pang, Lihua Xu, HuiRu Cui, MingLiang Ju, HaiChun Liu, Qiang Hu, Lingyun Zeng, Yingying Tang, Zhenghui Yi, Chunbo Li, Jijun Wang, Tianhong Zhang · 发表于：Nature Communications · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1038/s41467-025-66894-3 · 被引用次数：2 · 研究领域：Functional Brain Connectivity Studies、Schizophrenia research and treatment、Mental Health Research Topics

Cognitive impairments in early psychosis are common, yet prior studies have focused mainly on domain-specific deficits rather than inter-domain relationships. Analyzing cognitive network connectivity may uncover insights into early psychosis mechanisms. Cognitive functions were assessed from 2,518 participants, including 988 first-episode schizophrenia (FES), 767 clinical high-risk (CHR), and 763 healthy controls (HC), using the Chinese version of the Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB). Results revealed a stage-dependent “dedifferentiation” pattern: mean inter-domain correlation increased from HC (0.28) to CHR (0.33) to FES (0.40). Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a common “g” factor across groups, with significantly reduced strength in FES compared to CHR and HC. The reduction in the “g” factor was associated with increased connectivity and stronger inter-domain correlations. These findings highlight cognitive network dedifferentiation and “g” factor decline as key features of early psychosis. This study reveals stage-dependent cognitive network dedifferentiation in early psychosis, with increasing inter-domain correlations from healthy controls to clinical high risk to first-episode schizophrenia, linked to reduced general intelligence.