Aberrant associations between neuronal resting-state fluctuations and working memory-induced activity in major depressive disorder.

Previous investigations have revealed performance deficits and altered neural processes during working-memory (WM) tasks in major depressive disorder (MDD). While most of these studies used task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), there is an increasing interest in resting-state fMRI to characterize aberrant network dynamics involved in this and other MDD-associated symptoms. It has been proposed that activity during the resting-state represents characteristics of brain-wide functional organization, which could be highly relevant for the efficient execution of cognitive tasks.

Investigating the impact of rumination and adverse childhood experiences on resting-state neural activity and connectivity in depression.

Background: Both ruminative thought processes and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are well-established risk factors for the emergence and maintenance of depression. However, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these associations remain poorly understood.

Methods: We examined resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data (3 T Tim Trio MR scanner; Siemens, Erlangen) of 44 individuals diagnosed with an acute depressive episode.

Functional connectivity changes between amygdala and prefrontal cortex after ECT are associated with improvement in distinct depressive symptoms.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is one of the most effective treatments for treatment-resistant depression. However, the underlying mechanisms of action are not yet fully understood. The investigation of depression-specific networks using resting-state fMRI and the relation to differential symptom improvement might be an innovative approach providing new insights into the underlying processes.

Investigation of Neurofunctional Changes Over the Course of Electroconvulsive Therapy.

Background: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is an effective treatment for patients suffering from depression. Yet the exact neurobiological mechanisms underlying the efficacy of ECT and indicators of who might respond best to it remain to be elucidated. Identifying neural markers that can inform about an individual's response to ECT would enable more optimal treatment strategies and increase clinical efficacy.

Predicting Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine: the Role of the Pregenual Anterior Cingulate Cortex as a Multimodal Neuroimaging Biomarker.

Background: Growing evidence underscores the utility of ketamine as an effective and rapid-acting treatment option for major depressive disorder (MDD). However, clinical outcomes vary between patients. Predicting successful response may enable personalized treatment decisions and increase clinical efficacy.

EffECTively Treating Depression: A Pilot Study Examining Manualized Group CBT as Follow-Up Treatment After ECT.

There is an urgent need for effective follow-up treatments after acute electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in depressed patients. Preliminary evidence suggests psychotherapeutic interventions to be a feasible and efficacious follow-up treatment. However, there is a need for research on the long-term usefulness of such psychotherapeutic offers in a naturalistic setting that is more representative of routine clinical practice.

Adolescents' neural reactivity to acute psychosocial stress: dysfunctional regulation habits are linked to temporal gyrus response.

Mid-adolescence is a critical time for the development of stress-related disorders and it is associated with significant social vulnerability. However, little is known about normative neural processes accompanying psychosocial stress at this time. Previous research found that emotion regulation strategies critically influence the relationship between stress and the development of psychiatric symptoms during adolescence.

A symptom-based approach in predicting ECT outcome in depressed patients employing MADRS single items.

Establishing symptom-based predictors of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) outcome seems promising, however, findings concerning the predictive value of distinct depressive symptoms or subtypes are limited; previous factor-analytic approaches based on the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) remained inconclusive, as proposed factors varied across samples. In this naturalistic study, we refrained from these previous factor-analytic approaches and examined the predictive value of MADRS single items and their change during the course of ECT concerning ECT outcome. We used logistic and linear regression models to analyze MADRS data routinely assessed at three time points in 96 depressed psychiatric inpatients over the course of ECT.

Ketamine specifically reduces cognitive symptoms in depressed patients: An investigation of associated neural activation patterns.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is characterized by heterogeneous cognitive, affective and somatic symptoms. Hence, the investigation of differential treatment effects on these symptoms as well as the identification of symptom specific biomarkers might crucially contribute to the development of individualized treatment strategies. We here aimed to examine symptom specific responses to treatment with ketamine, which repeatedly demonstrated rapid antidepressant effects in severe MDD.

Gray matter volume of rostral anterior cingulate cortex predicts rapid antidepressant response to ketamine.

Ketamine was recently approved for treatment resistant depression. However, despite its therapeutic potential, about 50% of patients do not show improvement under this therapy. In this prospective two-site study, we investigated baseline brain structural predictors for rapid symptom improvement after a single subanesthetic ketamine infusion.

Differential Effects of Electroconvulsive Therapy in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder.

Background/aims/methods: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is still one of the most potent treatments in the acute phase of major depressive disorder (MDD) and particularly applied in patients considered treatment resistant. However, despite the frequent and widespread use of ECT for >70 years, the exact neurobiological mechanisms underlying its efficacy remain unclear. The present review aims to describe differential antidepressant and cognitive effects of ECT as well as effects on markers of neural activity and connectivity, neurochemistry, and inflammation that might underlie the treatment response and remission.

Aberrant working memory processing in major depression: evidence from multivoxel pattern classification.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is often accompanied by severe impairments in working memory (WM). Neuroimaging studies investigating the mechanisms underlying these impairments have produced conflicting results. It remains unclear whether MDD patients show hyper- or hypoactivity in WM-related brain regions and how potential aberrations in WM processing may contribute to the characteristic dysregulation of cognition-emotion interactions implicated in the maintenance of the disorder.