Increased subcortical brain activity in anxious but not depressed individuals. (April 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hou, Jiangyun; Liu, Shu; van Wingen, Guido
• Is Part Of: Journal of psychiatric research. Volume 160(2023)
• Page Start: 38
• Page End: 46
• Publication Date: 2023-04
• Subjects: Anxiety -- Depression -- Amplitude low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) -- Combined depressed and anxious symptoms -- Threshold-free cluster-enhancement (TFCE); Psychiatry -- Periodicals; Mental Disorders -- Periodicals; Maladies mentales -- Périodiques; Psychiatry; Electronic journals; Periodicals; 616.89005
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2023.02.013
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-3956

Abstract

Abstract: Background: Anxiety and depressive symptoms usually co-occur. Neuroimaging abnormalities in patients with depression and anxiety disorders are therefore related to a combination of symptoms. Here, we used a large population study to select individuals with anxiety, depressive, or both anxiety and depressive symptoms to identify whether neuroimaging differences are unique or shared between anxiety and depressive symptoms. Methods: We selected four groups of 200 individuals (anxiety, depression, anxiety and depression, controls) from the UK Biobank, matched for age, sex, intelligence, and educational attainment (total N = 800). We extracted the amplitude of low frequency fluctuations (ALFF) from resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data, which indexes spontaneous neuronal activity. Group differences were assessed using permutation testing to correct for multiple comparisons, with age, sex, IQ, and head motion as covariates. Results: Compared to controls, anxious individuals had higher ALFF values in many subcortical brain regions including the striatum, thalamus, medial temporal lobe, midbrain, pons, as well as the cerebellum. Anxious individuals also showed higher ALFF in the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, cerebellum, and pons compared to individuals with depressive symptoms. No significant differences were found for the depression and combined anxiety/depression groups. Post-hoc tests with largest possible samples showed comparable results in the anxiety group and in the combined group, but still no significant differences for the depression group. Conclusions: Anxiety but not depressive symptoms were associated with increased subcortical activity during rest. This suggest that anxiety symptoms may have the largest contribution to the neuroimaging differences in individuals with depression and anxiety disorders.