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. 2022 Apr 25:16:876121.
doi: 10.3389/fnins.2022.876121. eCollection 2022.

Altered Brain Function in First-Episode and Recurrent Depression: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Jifei Sun  1   2 , Limei Chen  1   2 , Jiakai He  2   3 , Zhongming Du  4 , Yue Ma  1   2 , Zhi Wang  1   2 , Chunlei Guo  1   2 , Yi Luo  1   2 , Deqiang Gao  1 , Yang Hong  1 , Lei Zhang  1 , Fengquan Xu  1 , Jiudong Cao  1 , Xiaobing Hou  5 , Xue Xiao  5 , Jing Tian  5 , Jiliang Fang  1 , Xue Yu  5
Affiliations

Altered Brain Function in First-Episode and Recurrent Depression: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Jifei Sun et al. Front Neurosci. .

Abstract

Background: Studies on differences in brain function activity between the first depressive episode (FDE) and recurrent depressive episodes (RDE) are scarce. In this study, we used regional homogeneity (ReHo) and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF) as indices of abnormal brain function activity. We aimed to determine the differences in these indices between patients with FDE and those with RDE, and to investigate the correlation between areas of abnormal brain function and clinical symptoms.

Methods: A total of 29 patients with RDE, 28 patients with FDE, and 29 healthy controls (HCs) who underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging were included in this study. The ReHo and ALFF measurements were used for image analysis and further analysis of the correlation between different brain regions and clinical symptoms.

Results: Analysis of variance showed significant differences among the three groups in ReHo and ALFF in the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. ReHo was higher in the right inferior frontal triangular gyrus and lower in the left inferior temporal gyrus in the RDE group than in the FDE group. Meanwhile, ALFF was higher in the right inferior frontal triangular gyrus, left anterior cingulate gyrus, orbital part of the left middle frontal gyrus, orbital part of the left superior frontal gyrus, and right angular gyrus, but was lower in the right lingual gyrus in the RDE group than in the FDE group. ReHo and ALFF were lower in the left angular gyrus in the RDE and FDE groups than in the HC group. Pearson correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between the ReHo and ALFF values in these abnormal areas in the frontal lobe and the severity of depressive symptoms (P < 0.05). Abnormal areas in the temporal and occipital lobes were negatively correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms (P < 0.05).

Conclusion: The RDE and FDE groups had abnormal neural function activity in some of the same brain regions. ReHo and ALFF were more widely distributed in different brain regions and had more complex neuropathological mechanisms in the RDE group than in the FDE group, especially in the right inferior frontal triangular gyrus of the frontal lobe.

Keywords: amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation; first depressive episode; magnetic resonance imaging; recurrent depressive episodes; regional homogeneity.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Brain regions with abnormal ReHo among the three groups based on one-way analysis of variance. The color bars indicate the F-value.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Brain regions with abnormal ALFF among the three groups based on one-way analysis of variance. The color bars indicate the F-value.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Brain regions with abnormal ReHo (left) and ALFF (right) between the RDE group and the FDE group based on a post hoc t-test. The color bars indicate the T-value.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Brain regions with abnormal ReHo (left) and ALFF (right) between the RDE group and the HC group based on a post hoc t-test. The color bars indicate the T-value.
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Brain regions with abnormal ReHo (left) and ALFF (right) between the FDE group and the HC group based on a post hoc t-test. The color bars indicate the T-value.
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
Positive correlation between the ReHo/ALFF values of abnormal brain regions and the HAMD-17 scores. (A) ReHo values in the recurrent depressive episode (RDE) group. (C) ALFF values in the RDE group. (D) ALFF values in the first depressive episode (FDE) group. Negative correlation between the ReHo/ALFF values of abnormal brain regions and the HAMD-17 scores. (B) ReHo values in the FDE group. (E) ALFF values in the FDE group. Frontal_Inf_Tri_R, right inferior frontal triangular gyrus; Cingulum_Ant_L/Frontal_Med_Orb_L, left anterior cingulate cortex/orbital part of the left middle frontal gyrus; Temporal_Inf_L/Occipital_Inf_L, left inferior temporal gyrus/left inferior occipital gyrus; Lingual_R, right lingual gyrus; ReHo, regional homogeneity; ALFF, amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations; HAMD-17, 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression.
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