Brain changes during the onset of schizophrenia: Implications for neurodevelopmental theories

• Neuroimaging studies of individuals at risk of psychosis have the potential to identify markers predictive of illness onset and features that progress with transition. • To date, reduced brain volumes have shown weak predictive value for onset of psychotic illness. • All published longitudinal studies of the transition to psychosis show progressive brain changes that are not seen in at-risk individuals who do not develop the disorder. • Although the cause of these changes is unclear, they challenge the conventional neurodevelopmental model of schizophrenia.