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. 2019 Mar:110:51-56.
doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2018.11.020. Epub 2018 Nov 22.

Brain network functional connectivity and cognitive performance in major depressive disorder

Kimberly M Albert  1 , Guy G Potter  2 , Brian D Boyd  3 , Hakmook Kang  4 , Warren D Taylor  5
Affiliations

Brain network functional connectivity and cognitive performance in major depressive disorder

Kimberly M Albert et al. J Psychiatr Res. 2019 Mar.

Abstract

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is one of the most prevalent and debilitating psychiatric disorders. Cognitive complaints are commonly reported in MDD and cognitive impairment is a criterion item for MDD diagnosis. As cognitive processes are increasingly understood as the consequences of distributed interactions between brain regions, a network-based approach may provide novel information about the neurobiological basis of cognitive deficits in MDD.

Methods: 51 Depressed (MDD, n = 23) and non-depressed (control, n = 28) adult participants completed neuropsychological testing and resting-state fMRI (rsfMRI). Cognitive domain scores (processing speed, working memory, episodic memory, and executive function) were calculated. Anatomical regions of interests were entered as seeds for functional connectivity analyses in: default mode (DMN), salience, and executive control (ECN) networks. Partial correlations controlling for age and sex were conducted for cognitive domain scores and functional connectivity in clusters with significant differences between groups.

Results: Significant rsfMRI differences between groups were identified in multiple clusters in the DMN and ECN. Greater positive connectivity within the ECN and between ECN and DMN regions was associated with poorer episodic memory performance in the Non-Depressed group but better performance in the MDD group. Greater connectivity within the DMN was associated with better episodic and working memory performance in the Non-Depressed group but worse performance in the MDD group.

Conclusions: These results provide evidence that cognitive performance in MDD may be associated with aberrant functional connectivity in cognitive networks and suggest patterns of alternate brain function that may support cognitive processes in MDD.

Keywords: Cognition; Functional MRI; Functional connectivity; Major depression.

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Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Resting functional connectivity patterns in all participants, using the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) seed for the executive control network, the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) seed for the default mode network, and the, insula (INS) seed for the salience network.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
A) Resting functional connectivity patterns associated with better cognitive performance (episodic memory) in participants with major depressive disorder (MDD) compared to non-depressed participants using the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) seed for the executive control network. B) Resting functional connectivity patterns associated with better cognitive performance (episodic and working memory) in non-depressed participants compared to participants with major depressive disorder (MDD) using the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) seed for the default mode network. C) Functional connectivity for bilateral dlPFC and PCC and cognitive domain scores (episodic and working memory) in the MDD and Non-Depressed groups.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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