A01

• What is the best-known neural correlate of schizophrenia?

  Dopamine (DA)
• Why is dopamine important in schizophrenia?

  It functions in brain systems related to symptoms
• What was the original dopamine hypothesis based on?

  Effects of antipsychotics reducing DA
• How do antipsychotics relate to Parkinson's disease?

  They cause symptoms similar to low DA levels
• What does hyperdopaminergia mean?

  High levels of dopamine in the brain
• How might excess DA receptors in Broca's area affect schizophrenia symptoms?

  They may cause poverty of speech and hallucinations
• Who proposed the addition of cortical hypodopaminergia to the dopamine hypothesis?

  Kenneth Davis et al. (1991)
• What does cortical hypodopaminergia refer to?

  Abnormally low dopamine in the brain's cortex
• How can low DA in the prefrontal cortex affect schizophrenia?

  It could explain cognitive problems and negative symptoms
• What relationship exists between cortical hypodopaminergia and subcortical hyperdopaminergia?

  Cortical hypodopaminergia leads to subcortical hyperdopaminergia
• What do current versions of the dopamine hypothesis aim to explain?

  Links between abnormal DA levels and symptoms
• What factors may increase sensitivity to cortical hypodopaminergia?

  Genetic variations and early stress experiences
• What types of stress can affect sensitivity to DA function?

  Both psychological and physical stress
• What are the key components of the dopamine hypothesis related to schizophrenia?

  • Original hypothesis: high DA levels (hyperdopaminergia)
  • Cortical hypodopaminergia: low DA in the cortex
  • Relationship between high and low DA in different brain regions
  • Genetic variations and early stress as contributing factors