Psychiatric Brain and Body Research Group Jena, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Jena, Philosophenweg 3, Jena, 07743, Germany.
Sci Rep. 2017 Aug 17;7(1):8675. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-09077-5.
Previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies demonstrated an abnormally coordinated network functioning in Major Depression Disorder (MDD) during rest. The main monoamine-producing nuclei within midbrain/brainstem are functionally integrated within these specific networks. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) of these nuclei in 45 MDD patients and differences between patients receiving two different classes of antidepressant drugs. Patients showed reduced RSFC from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and stronger RSFC to the left amygdala and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Patients treated with antidepressants influencing noradrenergic and serotonergic neurotransmission showed different RSFC from locus coeruleus to DLPFC compared to patients treated with antidepressants influencing serotonergic neurotransmission only. In the opposite contrast patients showed stronger RSFC from dorsal raphe to posterior brain regions. Enhanced VTA-RSFC to amygdala as a central region of the salience network may indicate an over-attribution of the affective salience to internally-oriented processes. Significant correlation between decreased VTA-dACC functional connectivity and the BDI-II somatic symptoms indicates an association with diminished volition and behavioral activation in MDD. The observed differences in the FC of the midbrain/brainstem nuclei between two classes of antidepressants suggest differential neural effects of SSRIs and SNRIs.
先前的功能磁共振成像（fMRI）研究表明，在静息状态下，重度抑郁症（MDD）患者的网络功能异常协调。中脑/脑干内主要的单胺产生核在这些特定的网络中具有功能整合。因此，我们旨在研究 45 名 MDD 患者这些核团的静息状态功能连接（RSFC）以及接受两种不同类型抗抑郁药的患者之间的差异。患者的腹侧被盖区（VTA）与背侧前扣带皮层（dACC）之间的 RSFC 减少，而左侧杏仁核和背外侧前额叶皮层（DLPFC）之间的 RSFC 增强。接受影响去甲肾上腺素能和 5-羟色胺能神经递质的抗抑郁药治疗的患者与仅接受影响 5-羟色胺能神经递质的抗抑郁药治疗的患者相比，从蓝斑核到 DLPFC 的 RSFC 不同。相反，患者从中缝核到大脑后区的 RSFC 更强。增强的 VTA-RSFC 到杏仁核作为突显网络的中央区域，可能表明对内部导向过程的情感突显过度归因。BDI-II 躯体症状与 VTA-dACC 功能连接减少之间的显著相关性表明，在 MDD 中存在意志减弱和行为激活减少的关联。两种类型的抗抑郁药之间中脑/脑干核团的 FC 观察到的差异表明，SSRIs 和 SNRIs 的神经作用不同。
