• This record comes from PubMed

Stress, epileptiform symptoms in schizophrenia and neural information transmission

. 2025 Jan 01 ; 16 (1) : 20250372. [epub] 20250509

Status PubMed-not-MEDLINE Language English Country Germany Media electronic-ecollection

Document type Journal Article

BACKGROUND: Several findings indicate that stress may influence epileptiform discharges manifesting in temporal-limbic areas, which may become a potential trigger of psychosis that may manifest without neurologically diagnosed epilepsy. Some findings suggest that measures assessing levels of inter-hemispheric information connection may reveal the spread of subclinical epileptiform neural activity associated with psychotic and seizure-like symptoms. Recent research also suggests that electrodermal activity (EDA), which is related to limbic activations, may allow indirect measurement of interhemispheric information transmission. These findings about the interhemispheric spread of information suggest a hypothesis that heightened spread of information between the brain hemispheres might indirectly indicate epileptiform discharges spreading between hemispheres. METHODS: We have analyzed and measured EDA and also cognitive and affective epileptic-like symptoms (CPSI, complex partial seizure-like symptoms), symptoms of chronic stress (Trauma Symptoms Checklist-40, TSC-40), and psychotic symptoms in 31 schizophrenia patients and compared these data with 31 healthy controls. RESULTS: The results indicate that in schizophrenia patients, the values of pointwise transinformation (PTI) calculated from right and left EDA time series are related to CPSI symptoms (Spearman correlation between CPSI and PTI is R = 0.48; p < 0.01) and symptoms of chronic stress (Spearman correlation between TSC-40 and PTI is R = 0.37, p < 0.05); both during mild stress conditions caused by conflicting (incongruent) Stroop task. CONCLUSION: The analysis indicates potentially diagnostically useful results suggesting that heightened PTI values may reflect autonomic activations that hypothetically might be linked to higher interhemispheric transmission related to spreading of epileptiform discharges between hemispheres.

See more in PubMed

Tolchin B, Hirsch LJ, LaFrance Jr WC. Neuropsychiatric aspects of epilepsy. Psychiatr Clin North Am. 2020;43(2):275–90. PubMed

Roberts RJ, Gorman LL, Lee GP, Hines ME, Richardson ED, Riggle TA, et al. The phenomenology of multiple partial seizure-like symptoms without stereotyped spells: An epilepsy spectrum disorder? Epilepsy Res. 1992;13:167–77. PubMed

Bob P. Stress sensitization and anticonvulsant medication in psychiatric patients. Polypharmacy in psychiatry practice. Vol. I, Dordrecht: Springer; 2013. p. 233–42.

Teicher MH, Andersen SL, Polcari A, Anderson CM, Navalta CP, Kim DM. The neurobiological consequences of early stress and childhood maltreatment. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2003;27:33–44. PubMed

Teicher MH, Samson JA, Anderson CM, Ohashi K. The effects of childhood maltreatment on brain structure, function and connectivity. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2016;17(10):652–66. PubMed

Bragatti JA. Forced normalization revisited: New concepts about a paradoxical phenomenon. Front Integr Neurosci. 2021;15:736248. PubMed PMC

Bob P, Touskova TP, Pec O, Raboch J, Boutros N, Lysaker P. Psychosocial stress, epileptic-like symptoms and psychotic experiences. Front Psychol. 2022;13:804628. 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.804628. PubMed DOI PMC

Naguy A, Al-Enezi N. Lamotrigine uses in psychiatric practice. Am J Ther. 2019;26(1):e96–102. PubMed

Post RM, Weiss SR, Pert A. Implications of behavioral sensitization and kindling for stress-induced behavioral change. Adv Exp Med Biol. 1988;245:441–63. PubMed

Post RM. Neurobiology of seizures and behavioral abnormalities. Epilepsia. 2004;45(Suppl 2):5–14. PubMed

Post RM. Epigenetic basis of sensitization to stress, affective episodes, and stimulants: implications for illness progression and prevention. Bipolar Disord. 2016;18(4):315–24. PubMed

Yuii K, Suzuki M, Kurachi M. Stress sensitization in schizophrenia. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2007;1113:276–90. PubMed

Bob P, Palus M, Susta M, Glaslova K. Sensitization, epileptic-like symptoms and local synchronization in patients with paranoid schizophrenia. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2010;34:143–6. PubMed

Bob P, Susta M, Gregusova A, Jasova D, Mishara A, Raboch J. Traumatic stress, dissociation, and limbic irritability in patients with unipolar depression being treated with SSRIs. Psychol Rep. 2010;107:685–96. PubMed

McIntyre DC, Gilby KL. Mapping seizure pathways in the temporal lobe. Epilepsia. 2008;49(Suppl 3):23–30. PubMed

Roca V, Freeman TW. Psychosensory symptoms in combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder. J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2002;14:185–9. PubMed

Weinand ME, Labiner DM, Ahern GL. Temporal lobe seizure interhemispheric propagation time depends on non-epileptic cortical cerebral blood flow. Epilepsy Res. 2001;44:33–9. PubMed

Weinand ME, Hussain N, Labiner DM, Ahern GL. Correlation of electrocorticographic to clinical seizure onset and interhemispheric propagation times in temporal lobe epilepsy. Pathophysiology. 2006;13:233–6. PubMed

Baumgartner C, Lurge RS, Leutmezer F. Autonomic symptoms during epileptic seizures. Epileptic Disord. 2001;3:103–16. PubMed

Devinsky O. Effects of seizures on autonomic and cardiovascular function. Epilepsy Curr. 2004;4:43–6. PubMed PMC

Mangina CA, Beuzeron-Mangina JH. Direct electrical stimulation of specific human brain structures and bilateral electrodermal activity. Int J Psychophysiol. 1996;22:1–8. PubMed

Alexandra Kredlow M, Fenster RJ, Laurent ES, Ressler KJ, Phelps EA. Prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and threat processing: Implications for PTSD. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2022;47(1):247–59. PubMed PMC

Critchley HD. Electrodermal responses: What happens in the brain. Neuroscientist. 2002;8:132–42. PubMed

Furmark T. Neurobiological aspects of social anxiety disorder. Isr J Psychiatry Relat Sci. 2009;46(1):5–12. PubMed

Poh MZ, Loddenkemper T, Swenson NC, Goyal S, Madsen JR, Picard RW. Continuous monitoring of electrodermal activity during epileptic seizures using a wearable sensor. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc; 2010. p. 4415–8. PubMed

American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 5th edn. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing; 2013.

Sheehan DV, Lecrubier Y, Sheehan KH, Amorim P, Janavs J, et al. The Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I.): The development and validation of a structured diagnostic psychiatric interview for DSM-IV and ICD-10. J Clin Psychiatry. 1998;59:22–33. PubMed

Wing JK, Curtis RH, Beevor AS. HoNOS: Health of the Nation Outcome Scales: Report on Research and Development July 1993-December 1995. London: Royal College of Psychiatrists; 1996.

Elliott DM, Briere J. Sexual abuse trauma among professional women: validating the Trauma Symptom Checklist-40 (TSC-40). Child Abuse Negl. 1992;16:391–8. PubMed

Kantz H, Schreiber T. Nonlinear time series analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 1997.

Lambertz M, Vandenhouten R, Grebe R, Langhorst P. Phase transitions in the common brainstem and related systems investigated by nonstationary time series analysis. J Auton Nerv Syst. 2000;78:141–57. PubMed

Bob P, Jasova D, Raboch J. Subclinical epileptiform process in patients with unipolar depression and its indirect psychophysiological manifestations. PLoS One. 2011;6(11):e28041. PubMed PMC

Bob P, Jasova D, Bizik G, Raboch J. Epileptiform activity in alcohol dependent patients and possibilities of its indirect measurement. PLoS One. 2011;6(4):e18678. PubMed PMC

Caldji C, Diorio J, Meaney MJ. Variations in maternal care alter GABAA receptor subunit expression in brain regions associated with fear. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2003;28:1950–9. PubMed

Yilmazer-Hanke D, O’Loughlin E, McDermott K. Contribution of amygdala pathology to comorbid emotional disturbances in temporal lobe epilepsy. J Neurosci Res. 2016;94(6):486–503. PubMed

Stevens JR, Denney D, Szot P. Sensitization with clozapine: Beyond the dopamine hypothesis. Biol Psychiatry. 1997;42:771–80. PubMed

Find record

Citation metrics

Loading data ...

Archiving options

Loading data ...