Dataset Information

Neural processing of reward and loss in girls at risk for major depression.

ABSTRACT: Deficits in reward processing and their neural correlates have been associated with major depression. However, it is unclear if these deficits precede the onset of depression or are a consequence of this disorder.To determine whether anomalous neural processing of reward characterizes children at familial risk for depression in the absence of a personal history of diagnosable disorder.Comparison of neural activity among children at low and high risk for depression as they process reward and loss.University functional magnetic resonance imaging facility.Thirteen 10- to 14-year-old never-disordered daughters of mothers with recurrent depression ("high risk") and 13 age-matched never-disordered daughters with no family history of depression ("low risk"). Main Outcome Measure Neural activity, as measured using functional magnetic resonance imaging, in key reward and attention neural circuitry during anticipation and receipt of reward and loss.While anticipating gains, high-risk participants showed less activation than did their low-risk counterparts in the putamen and left insula but showed greater activation in the right insula. When receiving punishment, high-risk participants showed greater activation in the dorsal anterior cingulate gyrus than did low-risk participants, who showed greater activation in the caudate and putamen.Familial risk for depression affects neural mechanisms underlying the processing of reward and loss; young girls at risk for depression exhibit anomalies in the processing of reward and loss before the onset of depressive symptoms. Longitudinal studies are needed to examine whether these characteristics predict the subsequent onset of depression.

SUBMITTER: Gotlib IH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2852176 | biostudies-other | 2010 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Neural processing of reward and loss in girls at risk for major depression.

Gotlib Ian H IH Hamilton J Paul JP Cooney Rebecca E RE Singh Manpreet K MK Henry Melissa L ML Joormann Jutta J

Archives of general psychiatry 20100401 4

<h4>Context</h4>Deficits in reward processing and their neural correlates have been associated with major depression. However, it is unclear if these deficits precede the onset of depression or are a consequence of this disorder.<h4>Objective</h4>To determine whether anomalous neural processing of reward characterizes children at familial risk for depression in the absence of a personal history of diagnosable disorder.<h4>Design</h4>Comparison of neural activity among children at low and high ri ...[more]

PMID: 20368513

Similar Datasets

Project description:ImportanceMajor depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with deficits in representing reward prediction errors (RPEs), which are the difference between experienced and predicted reward. Reward prediction errors underlie learning of values in reinforcement learning models, are represented by phasic dopamine release, and are known to affect momentary mood.ObjectiveTo combine functional neuroimaging, computational modeling, and smartphone-based large-scale data collection to test, in the absence of learning-related concerns, the hypothesis that depression attenuates the impact of RPEs.Design, setting, and participantsFunctional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data were collected on 32 individuals with moderate MDD and 20 control participants who performed a probabilistic reward task. A risky decision task with repeated happiness ratings as a measure of momentary mood was also tested in the laboratory in 74 participants and with a smartphone-based platform in 1833 participants. The study was conducted from November 20, 2012, to February 17, 2015.Main outcomes and measuresBlood oxygen level-dependent activity was measured in ventral striatum, a dopamine target area known to represent RPEs. Momentary mood was measured during risky decision making.ResultsOf the 52 fMRI participants (mean [SD] age, 34.0 [9.1] years), 30 (58%) were women and 32 had MDD. Of the 74 participants in the laboratory risky decision task (mean age, 34.2 [10.3] years), 44 (59%) were women and 54 had MDD. Of the smartphone group, 543 (30%) had a depression history and 1290 (70%) had no depression history; 918 (50%) were women, and 593 (32%) were younger than 30 years. Contrary to previous results in reinforcement learning tasks, individuals with moderate depression showed intact RPE signals in ventral striatum (z = 3.16; P = .002) that did not differ significantly from controls (z = 0.91; P = .36). Symptom severity correlated with baseline mood parameters in laboratory (ρ = -0.54; P < 1 × 10-6) and smartphone (ρ = -0.30; P < 1 × 10-39) data. However, participants with depression showed an intact association between RPEs and happiness in a computational model of momentary mood dynamics (z = 4.55; P < .001) that was not attenuated compared with controls (z = -0.42; P = .67).Conclusions and relevanceThe neural and emotional impact of RPEs is intact in major depression. These results suggest that depression does not affect the expression of dopaminergic RPEs and that attenuated RPEs in previous reports may reflect downstream effects more closely related to aberrant behavior. The correlation between symptom severity and baseline mood parameters supports an association between depression and momentary mood fluctuations during cognitive tasks. These results demonstrate a potential for smartphones in large-scale computational phenotyping, which is a goal for computational psychiatry.

Dataset Information

Neural processing of reward and loss in girls at risk for major depression.

Publications

Neural processing of reward and loss in girls at risk for major depression.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets