Pharmacopsychiatry 2011; 21 - A58
DOI: 10.1055/s-0031-1292499

Resting state network alterations in major Depression

D Hoehn 1, M Czisch 1, VI Spoormaker 1, M Schröter 1, R Goya-Maldonado 1, F Holsboer 1, PG Sämann 1
  • 1Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is increasingly being conceptualized as a systems disorder mediated by a disturbance of multiple brain networks. The analysis of functional connectivity (fc) in the resting state has emerged as a powerful tool when applied to neuropsychiatric disorders. We employed resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine fc in multiple resting state networks gained by means of probabilistic group Independent Component Analysis in 43 patients with acute MDD compared to 43 matched controls from a data-driven perspective. Individual network representations were estimated with the dual regression approach. Patients exhibited reduced fc in several networks. Contrary to our expectation that fc alterations would primarily be detected in affective and cognitive networks, effects were strongest in networks implicated in sensory processing, especially visual networks. Reduced fc was also detected in a basal ganglia network, consistent with a role of the basal ganglia in reward-related and affective processing. While imaging research in MDD has focused on networks directly implicated in mood regulation and cognition, these data suggest that network pathology in MDD is not confined to the primary mood-regulating circuit. Considering the heterogeneity of MDD, a systemic approach taking into account alterations in multiple networks may represent the most promising step for the definition of biologically relevant subgroups and potential biomarkers.