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Alterations in functional brain networks in depressed patients with a suicide attempt history

Jung, JeYoung; Choi, Sunyoung; Han, Kyu-Man; Kim, Aram; Kang, Wooyoung; Paik, Jong-Woo; Lee, Hae-Woo; Ham, Byung-Joo

Authors

Sunyoung Choi

Kyu-Man Han

Aram Kim

Wooyoung Kang

Jong-Woo Paik

Hae-Woo Lee

Byung-Joo Ham



Abstract

Suicide is a major challenge in public health and is strongly associated with major depressive disorder (MDD). Despite recent neuroimaging developments, the neural correlates of suicide behavior in patients with MDD remain unclear. Independent component analysis (ICA) for neuroimaging data allows the identification of functional brain networks without prior regions of interest and may help to identify neurobiological markers of specific disorders. Using ICA, we investigated the differences in resting-state brain networks in patients with MDD who had or did not have a history of suicide attempts and in healthy controls (HCs). Suicidal depressed (SD) patients, non-suicidal depressed (NSD) patients, and HCs significantly differed from each other in the pattern of connectivity of multiple functional networks, network synchronization, and functional network connectivity (FNC). The patient groups had a decreased network synchronization in the insular, cerebellum, basal ganglia, thalamus, operculum, frontoparietal cortices, and sensory cortices relative to the HCs. The decreased FNC between these networks (insular–default mode network and insular–cerebellum) was found in the SD group compared to the NSD and HC groups. These differences were not related to illness duration and medication status differences between SD and NSD. Furthermore, the degree of FNC in these networks was associated with the suicide ideation and stress level. Our results demonstrated that widespread but discrete network changes in brain networks and their interconnectivity was associated with suicide attempts in patients with MDD. Our results suggest that the neural basis underlying the psychopathology of attempted suicide in patients with MDD involves multiple brain networks and their interaction.

Citation

Jung, J., Choi, S., Han, K., Kim, A., Kang, W., Paik, J., …Ham, B. (2020). Alterations in functional brain networks in depressed patients with a suicide attempt history. Neuropsychopharmacology, 45, 964–974. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-019-0560-z

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Oct 8, 2019
Online Publication Date Oct 31, 2019
Publication Date May 1, 2020
Deposit Date May 22, 2020
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Neuropsychopharmacology
Print ISSN 0893-133X
Electronic ISSN 1740-634X
Publisher Nature Publishing Group
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 45
Pages 964–974
DOI https://doi.org/10.1038/s41386-019-0560-z
Keywords Pharmacology; Psychiatry and Mental health
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3870004
Publisher URL https://www.nature.com/articles/s41386-019-0560-z
Additional Information Received: 23 May 2019; Revised: 19 September 2019; Accepted: 8 October 2019; First Online: 31 October 2019