Emotion regulation in emerging adults with major depressive disorder and frequent cannabis use

Emily S Nichols; Jacob Penner; Kristen A Ford; Michael Wammes; Richard W J Neufeld; Derek G V Mitchell; Steven G Greening; Jean Théberge; Peter C Williamson; Elizabeth A Osuch

doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2021.102575

Emotion regulation in emerging adults with major depressive disorder and frequent cannabis use

Neuroimage Clin. 2021:30:102575. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2021.102575. Epub 2021 Jan 26.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Education, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
² Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Imaging Division, Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Canada; First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP), London Health Sciences Centre, London, Canada.
³ Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP), London Health Sciences Centre, London, Canada.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Neuroscience Program, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
⁵ Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
⁶ Department of Psychology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada.
⁷ Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Imaging Division, Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Canada; Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
⁸ Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; Imaging Division, Lawson Health Research Institute, London, Canada; First Episode Mood and Anxiety Program (FEMAP), London Health Sciences Centre, London, Canada; Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada. Electronic address: elizabeth.osuch@lhsc.on.ca.

Abstract

In people with mental health issues, approximately 20% have co-occurring substance use, often involving cannabis. Although emotion regulation can be affected both by major depressive disorder (MDD) and by cannabis use, the relationship among all three factors is unknown. In this study, we used fMRI to evaluate the effect that cannabis use and MDD have on brain activation during an emotion regulation task. Differences were assessed in 74 emerging adults aged 16-23 with and without MDD who either used or did not use cannabis. Severity of depressive symptoms, emotion regulation style, and age of cannabis use onset were also measured. Both MDD and cannabis use interacted with the emotion regulation task in the left temporal lobe, however the location of the interaction differed for each factor. Specifically, MDD showed an interaction with emotion regulation in the middle temporal gyrus, whereas cannabis use showed an interaction in the superior temporal gyrus. Emotion regulation style predicted activity in the right superior frontal gyrus, however, this did not interact with MDD or cannabis use. Severity of depressive symptoms interacted with the emotion regulation task in the left middle temporal gyrus. The results highlight the influence of cannabis use and MDD on emotion regulation processing, suggesting that both may have a broader impact on the brain than previously thought.

Keywords: Cannabis; Emotion regulation; Major depressive disorder; Neural activation.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Brain / diagnostic imaging
Cannabis*
Depressive Disorder, Major*
Emotional Regulation*
Emotions
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging