Abnormal neural oscillations and synchrony in schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a severe psychotic disorder with prominent cognitive dysfunctions. The pathophysiological mechanisms that give rise to the signs and symptoms of the disorder are still unclear, however.Neural oscillations and their synchronization may be core pathophysiological mechanisms in schizophrenia, as neural oscillations are fundamental for coordinated neural activity during normal brain functioning.Recent evidence shows that schizophrenia is associated with deficits in neural oscillations, especially in the beta- and gamma-band frequencies. These impairments closely correlate with cognitive dysfunctions and the core symptoms of the disorder.Dysfunctions in neural synchrony could result from deficits in GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid)-ergic neurotransmission and the reduced integrity of cortico-cortical connections, which are crucially involved in the generation of synchronized, oscillatory activity.Developmentally, neural oscillations are involved in the maturation of cortical networks during early and late critical periods that have been implicated in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.