Aberrant functional connectivity in insular subregions in somatic depression: a resting-state fMRI study

BMC Psychiatry

Ji Ting Geng¹  Jia Bo Shi²  Zhi Lu Chen²  Shuai Zhao²  Yu Chen²  Hongliang Zhou²  Xu Miao Wang²  Yi Xia²  Hao Wen Zou³  Ying Hong Huang³  Rui Yan³  Zhi Jian Yao⁴  Qing Lu⁵ 

[1] Affiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China;Department of psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, 264 Guangzhou Road, 210029, Nanjing, China;Department of psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, 264 Guangzhou Road, 210029, Nanjing, China;Nanjing Brain Hospital, Medical School, Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, 210093, Nanjing, China;Department of psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, 264 Guangzhou Road, 210029, Nanjing, China;Nanjing Brain Hospital, Medical School, Nanjing University, 22 Hankou Road, 210093, Nanjing, China;Department of psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, 264 Guangzhou Road, 210029, Nanjing, China;School of Biological Sciences and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2 sipailou, 210096, Nanjing, China;School of Biological Sciences and Medical Engineering, Southeast University, No. 2 sipailou, 210096, Nanjing, China;Child Development and Learning Science, Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education, 210096, Nanjing, China;

关键词: Somatic depression;    Ventral anterior insula;    Dorsal anterior insula;    Posterior insula;    Resting-state functional connectivity;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12888-022-03795-5

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundSomatic depression (SD) is different from non-somatic depression (NSD), and insular subregions have been associated with somatic symptoms. However, the pattern of damage in the insular subregions in SD remains unclear. The aim of this study was to use functional connectivity (FC) analyses to explore the bilateral ventral anterior insula (vAI), bilateral dorsal anterior insula (dAI), and bilateral posterior insula (PI) brain circuits in SD patients.MethodsThe study included 28 SD patients, 30 NSD patients, and 30 matched healthy control (HC) subjects. All participants underwent 3.0 T resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging. FC analyses were used to explore synchronization between insular subregions and the whole brain in the context of depression with somatic symptoms. Pearson correlation analyses were performed to assess relationships between FC values in brain regions showing significant differences and the total and factor scores on the 17-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAMD17).ResultsCompared with the NSD group, the SD group showed significantly decreased FC between the left vAI and the right rectus gyrus, right fusiform gyrus, and right angular gyrus; between the right vAI and the right middle cingulate cortex, right precuneus, and right superior frontal gyrus; between the left dAI and the left fusiform gyrus; and between the right dAI and the left postcentral gyrus. Relative to the NSD group, the SD group exhibited increased FC between the left dAI and the left fusiform gyrus. There were no differences in FC between bilateral PI and any brain regions among the SD, NSD, and HC groups. Within the SD group, FC values between the left vAI and right rectus gyrus were positively correlated with cognitive impairment scores on the HAMD17; FC values between the right vAI and right superior frontal gyrus were positively related to the total scores and cognitive impairment scores on the HAMD17 (p < 0.05, uncorrected).ConclusionsAberrant FC between the anterior insula and the frontal and limbic cortices may be one possible mechanism underlying SD.

【 授权许可】

CC BY