Liu Yuan, Jing Yifan, Gao Ying, Li Meijuan, Qin Wen, Xie Yingying, Zhang Bin, Li Jie
Institute of Mental Health, Tianjin Anding Hospital, Mental Health Center of Tianjin Medical University, 13 Liulin Rd., Hexi District, Tianjin, 300222, China.
Department of Radiology and Tianjin Key Laboratory of Functional Imaging, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China.
Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci. 2024 Jul 29. doi: 10.1007/s00406-024-01847-3.
Childhood trauma experiences and inflammation are pivotal factors in the onset and perpetuation of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, research on brain mechanisms linking childhood trauma experiences and inflammation to depression remains insufficient and inconclusive.
Resting-state fMRI scans were performed on fifty-six first-episode, drug-naive MDD patients and sixty healthy controls (HCs). A whole-brain functional network was constructed by thresholding 246 brain regions, and connectivity and network properties were calculated. Plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels were assessed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays in MDD patients, and childhood trauma experiences were evaluated through the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ).
Negative correlations were observed between CTQ total (r = -0.28, p = 0.047), emotional neglect (r = -0.286, p = 0.042) scores, as well as plasma IL-6 levels (r = -0.294, p = 0.036), with mean decreased functional connectivity (FC) in MDD patients. Additionally, physical abuse exhibited a positive correlation with the nodal clustering coefficient of the left thalamus in patients (r = 0.306, p = 0.029). Exploratory analysis indicated negative correlations between CTQ total and emotional neglect scores and mean decreased FC in MDD patients with lower plasma IL-6 levels (n = 28), while these correlations were nonsignificant in MDD patients with higher plasma IL-6 levels (n = 28).
This finding enhances our understanding of the correlation between childhood trauma experiences, inflammation, and brain activity in MDD, suggesting potential variations in their underlying pathophysiological mechanisms.
童年创伤经历和炎症是重度抑郁症（MDD）发病及持续存在的关键因素。然而，关于将童年创伤经历和炎症与抑郁症联系起来的脑机制研究仍不充分且尚无定论。
对56例首发、未用药的MDD患者和60名健康对照者（HCs）进行静息态功能磁共振成像扫描。通过对246个脑区进行阈值处理构建全脑功能网络，并计算连通性和网络属性。采用酶联免疫吸附测定法评估MDD患者的血浆白细胞介素-6（IL-6）水平，并通过儿童创伤问卷（CTQ）评估童年创伤经历。
在MDD患者中，观察到CTQ总分（r = -0.28，p = 0.047）、情感忽视得分（r = -0.286，p = 0.042）以及血浆IL-6水平（r = -0.294，p = 0.036）与平均功能连通性（FC）降低之间存在负相关。此外，身体虐待与患者左侧丘脑的节点聚类系数呈正相关（r = 0.306，p = 0.029）。探索性分析表明，在血浆IL-6水平较低的MDD患者（n = 28）中，CTQ总分和情感忽视得分与平均FC降低之间存在负相关，而在血浆IL-6水平较高的MDD患者（n = 28）中，这些相关性不显著。
这一发现增进了我们对MDD中童年创伤经历、炎症和脑活动之间相关性的理解，提示其潜在病理生理机制可能存在差异。
