Antoinette Burger

Verified @gmail.com

Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Neurosurgery
Brown University / Lifespan Hospital Group

Antoinette Burger


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https://researchid.co/antburger

EDUCATION

PhD in neuroscience (psychiatry)

RESEARCH INTERESTS

Advanced neuroimaging to assess neurological and psychiatric disorders.
3

Scopus Publications

44

Scholar Citations

2

Scholar h-index

2

Scholar i10-index

Scopus Publications

  • Subcortical volumes, frontal cortical thickness, and pro-inflammatory cytokines in schizophrenia versus methamphetamine-induced psychosis
    Lauren Blake, Kimberley C. Williams, Anne A. Uhlmann, Henk Temmingh, Antoinette Burger, et al.
    Brain Imaging and Behavior, 2025
    Schizophrenia is associated with alterations in subcortical volumes, cortical thickness and pro-inflammatory cytokines, that may correlate with clinical features. However, analogous work on methamphetamine-induced psychosis is lacking. This study examines subcortical volumes, frontal cortical thickness and pro-inflammatory cytokines in schizophrenia and methamphetamine-induced psychosis. Diagnosis and symptom severity were determined using the Structured Clinical Interview for Axis I Disorders and the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale, respectively. Structural T1-weighted images were acquired using a 3-Tesla magnetic resonance imaging scanner. Serum peripheral cytokine concentrations were measured using a multiplex bead array. Schizophrenia (n = 36) and methamphetamine-induced psychosis (n = 27) participants showed decreased left amygdala volumes and frontal cortical thickness compared to healthy controls (n = 32). Schizophrenia participants had increased bilateral caudate, putamen, and nucleus accumbens volumes compared to controls, and greater right globus pallidus and nucleus accumbens volumes compared to the methamphetamine-induced psychosis group. No significant differences were found in cytokine levels between groups or associations with neuroimaging measures. The novel discovery of increased globus pallidus and nucleus accumbens volumes in schizophrenia group compared with methamphetamine-induced psychosis group may show important distinctions in the neurobiology between these conditions. Future investigations should employ larger sample sizes, incorporate longitudinal study designs, and integrate magnetic resonance spectroscopy which may show important neurometabolic signatures in these brain regions in methamphetamine-induced psychosis.
  • The relationship between measurement of in vivo brain glutamate and markers of iron metabolism: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study in healthy adults
    Antoinette Burger, Maritha J. Kotze, Dan J. Stein, Susan Janse van Rensburg, Fleur M. Howells
    European Journal of Neuroscience, 2020
    Fundamental human studies which address associations between glutamate and iron metabolism are needed. Basic research reports associations between glutamate and iron metabolism. Human studies report sex differences in iron metabolism and glutamate concentrations, which suggest that these relationships may differ by sex. We hypothesised associations would be apparent between in vivo glutamate and peripheral markers of iron metabolism, and these associations would differ by sex. To test this, we recruited 40 healthy adults (20 men, 20 women) and measured (a) standard clinical biomarker concentrations for iron metabolism and (b) an in vivo proxy for glutamate concentration, glutamate with glutamine in relation to total creatine containing metabolites using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy studies with a two‐dimensional chemical shift imaging slice, with voxels located in bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, anterior cingulate cortices and frontal white matter. Only the female group reported significant associations between peripheral markers of iron metabolism and Glx:tCr concentration: (a) right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex Glx:tCr associated positively with serum transferrin (r = .60, p = .006) and negatively with transferrin saturation (r = −.62, p = .004) and (b) right frontal white matter Glx:tCr associated negatively with iron concentration (r = −.59, p = .008) and transferrin saturation (r = −.65, p = .002). Our results support associations between iron metabolism and our proxy for in vivo glutamate concentration (Glx:tCr). These associations were limited to women, suggesting a stronger regulatory control between iron and glutamate metabolism. These associations support additional fundamental research into the molecular mechanisms of this regulatory control.
  • The impact of acute and short-term methamphetamine abstinence on brain metabolites: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy chemical shift imaging study
    Antoinette Burger, Samantha J. Brooks, Dan J. Stein, Fleur M. Howells
    Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2018

RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS

  • Subcortical volumes, frontal cortical thickness, and pro-inflammatory cytokines in schizophrenia versus methamphetamine-induced psychosis
    L Blake, KC Williams, AA Uhlmann, H Temmingh, A Burger, DJ Stein, ...
    Brain Imaging and Behavior 19 (4), 874-888 , 2025
    2025
    Citations: 2
  • Investigating neuroinflammation in schizophrenia: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) and cytokine study
    A Burger
    2022
  • The relationship between measurement of in vivo brain glutamate and markers of iron metabolism: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study in healthy adults
    A Burger, MJ Kotze, DJ Stein, S Janse van Rensburg, FM Howells
    European Journal of Neuroscience 51 (4), 984-990 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 18
  • The relationship between a measure of in vivo brain glutamate and markers of iron metabolism: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study in healthy adults
    A Burger, MJ Kotze, DJ Stein, S Janse van Rensburg, FM Howells
    Wiley , 2019
    2019
  • The impact of acute and short-term methamphetamine abstinence on brain metabolites: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy chemical shift imaging study
    A Burger, SJ Brooks, DJ Stein, FM Howells
    Drug and alcohol dependence 185, 226-237 , 2018
    2018
    Citations: 24
  • Investigating the Influence of Methamphetamine on brain metabolism using 1H-MRS
    A Burger
    2016
  • The effect of in utero exposure to methamphetamine on brain metabolism in childhood using H-1-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-1-MRS)
    A Burger, A Roos, M Kwiatkowsi, DJ Stein, KA Donald, FM Howells
    SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY 21 (3), 109-109 , 2015
    2015
  • The effect of early abstinence from long-term methamphetamine use on brain metabolism using H-1-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-1-MRS)
    A Burger, S Brooks, DJ Stein, FM Howells
    SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY 21 (3), 109-109 , 2015
    2015

MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS

  • The impact of acute and short-term methamphetamine abstinence on brain metabolites: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy chemical shift imaging study
    A Burger, SJ Brooks, DJ Stein, FM Howells
    Drug and alcohol dependence 185, 226-237 , 2018
    2018
    Citations: 24
  • The relationship between measurement of in vivo brain glutamate and markers of iron metabolism: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study in healthy adults
    A Burger, MJ Kotze, DJ Stein, S Janse van Rensburg, FM Howells
    European Journal of Neuroscience 51 (4), 984-990 , 2020
    2020
    Citations: 18
  • Subcortical volumes, frontal cortical thickness, and pro-inflammatory cytokines in schizophrenia versus methamphetamine-induced psychosis
    L Blake, KC Williams, AA Uhlmann, H Temmingh, A Burger, DJ Stein, ...
    Brain Imaging and Behavior 19 (4), 874-888 , 2025
    2025
    Citations: 2
  • Investigating neuroinflammation in schizophrenia: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) and cytokine study
    A Burger
    2022
  • The relationship between a measure of in vivo brain glutamate and markers of iron metabolism: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study in healthy adults
    A Burger, MJ Kotze, DJ Stein, S Janse van Rensburg, FM Howells
    Wiley , 2019
    2019
  • Investigating the Influence of Methamphetamine on brain metabolism using 1H-MRS
    A Burger
    2016
  • The effect of in utero exposure to methamphetamine on brain metabolism in childhood using H-1-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-1-MRS)
    A Burger, A Roos, M Kwiatkowsi, DJ Stein, KA Donald, FM Howells
    SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY 21 (3), 109-109 , 2015
    2015
  • The effect of early abstinence from long-term methamphetamine use on brain metabolism using H-1-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (H-1-MRS)
    A Burger, S Brooks, DJ Stein, FM Howells
    SOUTH AFRICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY 21 (3), 109-109 , 2015
    2015

Publications

Burger A, Lindner M, Robertson FC, Blake L, Williams KC, Naude PJW, Temmingh HS, Stein DS. Comparison of schizophrenia and methamphetamine-induced psychosis: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy and cytokine study. In press.