Increased cerebellar-default-mode-network connectivity in drug-naive major depressive disorder at rest.
The default-mode network (DMN) has been implicated in the neurobiology of major depressive disorder (MDD), and the cerebellum is suggested to be involved in high-order cognitive network such as the DMN. However, the specific contribution of the cerebellum to the DMN alterations remains equivocal. This study was conducted to examine the cerebellar-DMN connectivity in drug-naive MDD directly by using the cerebellum Crus I as seeds.Forty-four drug-naive MDD patients and 44 healthy controls participated in the resting-state scan. Functional connectivity (FC) was applied to analyze the images.Significantly increased FCs were observed between the right Crus I and the right inferior frontal cortex (orbital part)/superior temporal pole, bilateral MPFC (orbital part), and left middle temporal gyrus in the patients compared with the controls. There was a significantly positive correlation between the z values of the right Crus I-bilateral MPFC (orbital part) connectivity and the scores of Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire in the patients (r = 0.329, P = 0.029).The findings reveal that depressed patients have increased cerebellar-DMN connectivity with clinical significance, and thus highlight the contribution of the cerebellum to the DMN alterations in neurobiology of MDD.
From the Mental Health Center (GW, LJ, YM, ZZ, LG, XC), the First Affiliated Hospital, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi; Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education (LF), School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan; and Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital (ZJ), Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health of Hunan Province, Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China.
Wenbin
W
Guo
Feng
F
Liu
Jianrong
J
Liu
Miaoyu
M
Yu
Zhikun
Z
Zhang
Guiying
G
Liu
Changqing
C
Xiao
Jingping
J
Zhao
D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000503:physiopathology; D065843:Cerebral Crus / Q000503:physiopathology; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012146:Rest; D055815:Young Adult