Prepulse inhibition of startle and its moderation by schizotypy and smoking

Abstract The influences of smoking status and schizotypy on prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the startle eye-blink response were assessed in 71 healthy volunteers, across a wide range of prepulse-to-pulse intervals (50-2020 ms). Multiple regression analyses revealed that nonsmoking participants high in cognitive disorganization showed reduced PPI between 50 and 260 ms, whereas at prepulse intervals of 80 and 140 ms individuals high in introvertive anhedonia had greater PPI compared to their low-scoring counterparts. Moreover, there were positive associations in nonsmokers between introvertive anhedonia and latencies to onset and peak response. In contrast, for those individuals who smoked these associations were attenuated or abolished. The results suggest that PPI is altered differentially in psychosis-prone populations who display different symptom profiles, and that these relationships are moderated by smoking status.