The Program in Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
Dev Cogn Neurosci. 2012 Apr;2(2):256-67. doi: 10.1016/j.dcn.2011.11.008. Epub 2011 Dec 24.
While major depressive disorder has been shown to be a significant mental health issue for school-age children, recent research indicates that depression can be observed in children as early as the preschool period. Yet, little work has been done to explore the neurobiological factors associated with this early form of depression. Given research suggesting a relation between adult depression and anomalies in emotion-related neural circuitry, the goal of the current study was to elucidate changes in functional activation during negative mood induction and emotion regulation in school-age children with a history of preschool-onset depression. The results suggest that a history of depression during the preschool period is associated with decreased activity in prefrontal cortex during mood induction and regulation. Moreover, the severity of current depressed mood was associated with increased activity in limbic regions, such as the amygdala, particularly in children with a history of depression. Similar to results observed in adult depression, the current findings indicate disruptions in emotion-related neural circuitry associated with preschool-onset depression.
虽然重度抑郁症已被证实是学龄儿童的一个重大心理健康问题，但最近的研究表明，早在学龄前儿童中就可以观察到抑郁。然而，很少有研究探讨与这种早期抑郁形式相关的神经生物学因素。鉴于研究表明成人抑郁症与情绪相关神经回路异常之间存在关系，目前这项研究的目的是阐明有学龄前抑郁症病史的学龄儿童在负性情绪诱导和情绪调节期间功能激活的变化。研究结果表明，学龄前时期的抑郁史与情绪诱导和调节期间前额叶皮层活动减少有关。此外，当前抑郁情绪的严重程度与边缘区域（如杏仁核）的活动增加有关，特别是在有抑郁病史的儿童中。与在成人抑郁症中观察到的结果类似，当前的研究结果表明，与学龄前抑郁症相关的情绪相关神经回路存在中断。
