Intrinsic neural circuitry of depression in adolescent females

Abstract

Background Adolescence is characterized by affective and cognitive changes that increase vulnerability to depression, especially in females. Neurodevelopmental models attribute adolescent depression to abnormal responses in amygdala, striatum, and prefrontal cortex (PFC). We examined whether the strength of functional brain networks involving these regions predicts depression symptoms in adolescent females. Methods In this longitudinal study, we recorded resting‐state functional connectivity (RSFC) in 174 adolescent females. Using a cross‐validation strategy, we related RSFC profiles that included (a) a network consisting of amygdala, striatum, and PFC (within‐circuit model), (b) connectivity of this network to the whole brain (extended‐circuit model), and (c) a network consisting of the entire brain (whole‐brain model) to depression symptoms assessed concurrently and 18 months later. Results In testing subsets, the within‐circuit RSFC profiles were associated with depression symptoms concurrently and 18 months later, while the extended‐circuit and whole‐brain model did not explain any additional variance in depression symptoms. Connectivity related to anterior cingulate and ventromedial prefrontal cortex contributed most to the association. Conclusions Our results demonstrate that RSFC‐based brain networks that include amygdala, striatum, and PFC are stable neural signatures of concurrent and future depression symptoms, representing a significant step toward identifying the neural mechanism of depression in adolescence.

Adolescent depression and resting-state fMRI brain networks: a scoping review of longitudinal studies

“…The first rs-fMRI longitudinal study in adolescent MDD was published in 2011. 62 Low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) were underrepresented, with only one study from Brazil 60 as compared to eight from the United States 58 , 62 , 63 , 65 , 66 - 69 , 71 and four from Australia. 61 , 64 , 67 , 70 Sample sizes ranged from 41 to 637 subjects.…”

“… 60 , 65 Smaller samples reported on well-characterized clinical MDD, 63 - 65 , 69 whereas larger studies were frequently drawn from community-based samples in which categorical MDD assessment was not commonly performed. 58 , 61 , 62 , 66 - 68 , 70 , 71 Some of these community-based studies only reported dimensional measures of depressive symptoms from specific (Child Depression Inventory, Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale) or non-specific (Youth Self-Report and Adult Self-Report, Child and Adolescent PsychProfiler) instruments.…”

“…Jin et al 66 evaluated depressive symptoms in 173 adolescent girls for up to 18 months. They investigated a hypothesis-based network formed by 40 nodes comprising the amygdala, the striatum, and the prefrontal cortex.…”

“… 61 , 64 , 67 Still, hyperconnectivity between the DMN and the SN and within the SN were prevalent findings in our review. 66 , 68 , 71 One possible explanation for these – to some extent – conflicting findings may arise from the classification of the ACC within the triple-network model. While this region is not a classical DMN node, hyperconnectivity between ACC and other anterior brain regions may reflect further evidence for the dysfunctional anterior DMN connectivity in MDD.…”

Brain Networks Connectivity in Mild to Moderate Depression: Resting State fMRI Study with Implications to Nonpharmacological Treatment

“…Depression may be related to impaired FC of some other networks, e.g., sensorimotor [ 30 – 33 ], ventral and dorsal attention [ 32 – 33 ], language [ 25 ], affective [ 11 , 17 , 31 ], visual [ 23 , 33 ], and audial [ 23 , 33 ]. Some researchers also proposed spatial brain patterns that they view as networks of depression [ 34 – 36 ] or its certain features like rumination [ 37 ] or social emotion disruption [ 5 ].…”