Yuko Nakamura1,2, Naohiro Okada3,4, Daisuke Koshiyama3, Kouhei Kamiya5, Osamu Abe5, Akira Kunimatsu5,6, Kazuo Okanoya1,2,4,7, Kiyoto Kasai1,2,3,4,7, Shinsuke Koike1,2,3,4,7. 1. Center for Integrative Science of Human Behavior, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 2. Center for Evolutionary Cognitive Science at the University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 3. Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 4. International Research Center for Neurointelligence (WPI-IRCN), UTIAS, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 5. Department of Radiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 6. Department of Radiology, IMSUT Hospital, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. 7. University of Tokyo Institute for Diversity & Adaptation of Human Mind (UTIDAHM), Tokyo, Japan.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Disruptions in the dopamine system have been observed in psychiatric disorders. Since dopamine is mainly produced in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), elucidating the differences in the VTA neural network across psychiatric disorders would facilitate a greater understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying these disorders. However, no study has compared VTA-seed-based functional connectivity across psychiatric disorders. Therefore, we conducted a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) study to perform a seed-based fMRI analysis, using the VTA as a seed. METHODS: We included participants with major depressive disorder (MDD; n = 45), schizophrenia (n = 32), and bipolar disorder (BPD; n = 30), along with healthy control participants (n = 46) who were matched for age, gender, and handedness. RESULTS: The results showed that patients with MDD and BPD had altered VTA-related connectivity in the superior frontal gyrus, frontal pole regions, hippocampus, cerebellum, and posterior cingulate cortex. Some of these differences in connectivity were also found between affective disorders and schizophrenia; however, there were no differences between the schizophrenia and control groups. Connectivity between the VTA and the hippocampus was correlated with positive symptoms in the schizophrenia group. The connectivity was not associated with medication dose, and the results remained significant after controlling for dose. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that altered brain functional connectivity related to VTA networks could be associated with the distinctive pathophysiologies of psychiatric disorders, especially affective disorders.
OBJECTIVE: Disruptions in the dopamine system have been observed in psychiatric disorders. Since dopamine is mainly produced in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), elucidating the differences in the VTA neural network across psychiatric disorders would facilitate a greater understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms underlying these disorders. However, no study has compared VTA-seed-based functional connectivity across psychiatric disorders. Therefore, we conducted a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) study to perform a seed-based fMRI analysis, using the VTA as a seed. METHODS: We included participants with major depressive disorder (MDD; n = 45), schizophrenia (n = 32), and bipolar disorder (BPD; n = 30), along with healthy control participants (n = 46) who were matched for age, gender, and handedness. RESULTS: The results showed that patients with MDD and BPD had altered VTA-related connectivity in the superior frontal gyrus, frontal pole regions, hippocampus, cerebellum, and posterior cingulate cortex. Some of these differences in connectivity were also found between affective disorders and schizophrenia; however, there were no differences between the schizophrenia and control groups. Connectivity between the VTA and the hippocampus was correlated with positive symptoms in the schizophrenia group. The connectivity was not associated with medication dose, and the results remained significant after controlling for dose. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that altered brain functional connectivity related to VTA networks could be associated with the distinctive pathophysiologies of psychiatric disorders, especially affective disorders.
Authors: Sarah Trost; Esther K Diekhof; Holger Mohr; Henning Vieker; Bernd Krämer; Claudia Wolf; Maria Keil; Peter Dechent; Elisabeth B Binder; Oliver Gruber Journal: Neuropsychopharmacology Date: 2016-05-13 Impact factor: 7.853
Authors: David F Gregory; Jane M Rothrock; Maria Jalbrzikowski; William Foran; David F Montez; Beatriz Luna; Vishnu P Murty Journal: eNeuro Date: 2021-03-18
Authors: Julia Schulz; Juliana Zimmermann; Christian Sorg; Aurore Menegaux; Felix Brandl Journal: Front Psychiatry Date: 2022-09-20 Impact factor: 5.435