Mindfulness meditation and real-time brain activity in schizophrenia (MARBAIS)

摘要 精神分裂症的正念冥想和实时大脑活动（MARBAIS）。 最近的研究表明，正念训练对治疗精神分裂症有效。在正念训练中， 冥想占据了中心位置。然而，学习冥想并不简单，因为没有直接的 由于没有容易辨别的外在表现迹象，因此可以向学生提供反馈。另外还有按 教师的反馈可能会无意中混淆，例如由于学生描述内部的能力， 教师解释学生口头描述的能力，或者学生对 老师的指示。一个可能的解决方案是在冥想时提供神经反馈， 因此，个人有一个公正的“精神镜子”，直接告诉他们他们的冥想质量， 真实的时间。在一项概念验证研究中，我们表明，来自大脑皮层的脑电神经反馈 后扣带皮层（PCC）追踪健康冥想新手的正念冥想质量。然而，在这方面， 由于精神分裂症患者患有广泛的症状，包括认知障碍， 注意力下降，目前尚不清楚PCC活动和冥想质量是否相关 精神分裂症在拟议的研究中，目标1将确定是否来自PCC的EEG神经反馈 追踪精神分裂症患者正念冥想的主观体验。为此，20名患者 精神分裂症患者在进行正念冥想时会进行神经反馈测试。目的2 将确定精神分裂症患者是否可以通过意志调节EEG神经反馈， 使用正念冥想的PCC。此外，探索性目标3将调查是否存在 意志调节PCC神经反馈的能力与精神分裂症之间的关联- 相关医学这将是第一项评估神经反馈与 精神分裂症患者信号和冥想质量如果我们发现PCC活动与冥想质量有关， 患者能够通过冥想自愿调节活动，这将为研究 在一项随机临床试验中观察这种非药物干预的有效性。

Abstract Mindfulness meditation and Real-time Brain Activity in Schizophrenia (MARBAIS). Recent work suggests that mindfulness training is effective to treat schizophrenia. In mindfulness training, meditation takes a central position. However, learning to meditate is not straightforward as no immediate feedback to students is possible as there are no easily discernible outward signs of performance. In addition, a teacher's feedback may inadvertently be confounded, due to e.g. the ability of a student to describe internal states, the teacher's ability to interpret the students' verbal descriptions, or the student's interpretation of the teacher's instructions. A possible solution to this issue would be to provide neurofeedback during meditation, so individuals have an unbiased “mental mirror” which directly informs them on their meditation quality in real time in an unbiased way. In a proof-of-concept study, we showed that EEG neurofeedback from the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) tracks mindfulness meditation quality in healthy novice meditators. However, as patients with schizophrenia suffer from a broad range of symptoms, including cognitive impairment and reduced attentive capabilities, it is currently unclear whether PCC activity and meditation quality are associated in schizophrenia. In the proposed study, Aim 1 will determine whether EEG neurofeedback from the PCC tracks the subjective experience of mindfulness meditation in schizophrenia. To achieve this, 20 patients with schizophrenia will perform a neurofeedback test-battery while performing mindfulness meditation. Aim 2 will determine whether patients with schizophrenia can volitionally modulate EEG neurofeedback from the PCC using mindfulness meditation. In addition, exploratory aim 3 will investigate whether there is an association between the ability to volitionally modulate neurofeedback from the PCC and schizophrenia- related symptomatology. This would be the first study to assess the association between a neurofeedback signal and meditation quality in schizophrenia. If we find that PCC activity tracks with meditation quality and patients are able to volitionally modulate activity by meditating, it would provide the rationale to investigate the efficacy of this non-pharmacological intervention in a randomized clinical trial.