Yuan Lijin, Chu Zhaosong, Chen Xianyu, He Mengxin, Lu Yi, Xu Xiufeng, Shen Zonglin
Department of Psychiatry, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650032, Yunnan, China.
Department of Medical Imaging, First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan 650032, China.
Depress Anxiety. 2024 Oct 14;2024:9680180. doi: 10.1155/2024/9680180. eCollection 2024.
Melancholic depression (MD) is a common subtype of major depressive disorder (MDD). It is difficult to treat because its neurobiological basis is poorly understood. Therefore, to investigate whether MD patients have any structural changes in gray matter (GM) and the molecular foundation of these changes, we combined voxel-based morphometry (VBM) analysis with neurotransmitter system-derived mapping from public data. 137 drug-naive MDD patients and 75 healthy controls (HCs) were recruited for structural magnetic resonance imaging. The imaging results were analyzed using VBM analysis. MDD patients were then divided into MD and nonmelancholic depression (NMD) subgroups according to their scores on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. Next, we analyzed the spatial correlation between the changes in the gray matter volume (GMV) maps and the neurotransmitter receptor/transporter protein density maps provided by the JuSpace toolbox. Compared to HCs, patients with MD had significant GMV reduction in the bilateral hippocampus, bilateral thalamus, right amygdala, and right posterior cingulate cortex (PCC)/precuneus. Compared to patients with NMD, MD patients had significant GMV reduction in the bilateral PCC/precuneus and lateral occipital cortex. Moreover, compared to HCs, changes in GMV introduced by MD were spatially associated with the serotonin transporter, cannabinoid receptor, and -opioid receptor. Compared to NMD patients, changes in GMV introduced by MD were spatially associated with the vesicular acetylcholine transporter. The present study discovered abnormal GMV alterations in patients with subtypes of depression. We also found a series of neurotransmitter receptors that may be associated with the alterations. The findings of the current study may provide a more comprehensive understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the structural abnormalities in subtypes of depression and potentially offer new insights into developing new therapeutic strategies.
忧郁症性抑郁症（MD）是重度抑郁症（MDD）的一种常见亚型。由于其神经生物学基础尚不清楚，因此难以治疗。因此，为了研究MD患者的灰质（GM）是否存在任何结构变化以及这些变化的分子基础，我们将基于体素的形态计量学（VBM）分析与来自公共数据的神经递质系统衍生图谱相结合。招募了137名未服用过药物的MDD患者和75名健康对照者（HCs）进行结构磁共振成像。使用VBM分析对成像结果进行分析。然后根据蒙哥马利-阿斯伯格抑郁评定量表（MADRS）和汉密尔顿抑郁评定量表的得分，将MDD患者分为MD和非忧郁症性抑郁症（NMD）亚组。接下来，我们分析了灰质体积（GMV）图谱变化与JuSpace工具包提供的神经递质受体/转运蛋白密度图谱之间的空间相关性。与HCs相比，MD患者在双侧海马体、双侧丘脑、右侧杏仁核以及右侧后扣带回皮质（PCC）/楔前叶的GMV显著降低。与NMD患者相比，MD患者在双侧PCC/楔前叶和枕外侧皮质的GMV显著降低。此外，与HCs相比，MD引起的GMV变化在空间上与血清素转运体、大麻素受体和阿片受体相关。与NMD患者相比，MD引起的GMV变化在空间上与囊泡乙酰胆碱转运体相关。本研究发现了抑郁症亚型患者GMV的异常改变。我们还发现了一系列可能与这些改变相关的神经递质受体。当前研究的结果可能会更全面地理解抑郁症亚型结构异常背后的分子机制，并可能为开发新的治疗策略提供新的见解。
