Diurnal mood variation symptoms in major depressive disorder associated with evening chronotype: Evidence from a neuroimaging study

Zhilu Chen; Shuai Zhao; Shui Tian; Rui Yan; Huan Wang; Xumiao Wang; Rongxin Zhu; Yi Xia; Zhijian Yao; Qing Lu

doi:10.1016/j.jad.2021.10.087

Diurnal mood variation symptoms in major depressive disorder associated with evening chronotype: Evidence from a neuroimaging study

J Affect Disord. 2022 Feb 1;298(Pt A):151-159. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2021.10.087. Epub 2021 Oct 29.

Authors

Zhilu Chen¹, Shuai Zhao¹, Shui Tian², Rui Yan³, Huan Wang², Xumiao Wang¹, Rongxin Zhu¹, Yi Xia¹, Zhijian Yao⁴, Qing Lu⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China.
² School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China.
³ Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China; Nanjing Brain Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210029, China; School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China; Nanjing Brain Hospital, Medical School of Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, China. Electronic address: zjyao@njmu.edu.cn.
⁵ School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China; Child Development and Learning Science, Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education, 210096, China. Electronic address: luq@seu.edu.cn.

PMID: 34715183
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2021.10.087

Abstract

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is often accompanied with classic diurnal mood variation (DMV) symptoms. Patients with DMV symptoms feel a mood improvement and prefer activities at dusk or in the evening, which is consistent with the evening chronotype. Their neural alterations are unclear. In this study, we aimed to explore the neuropathological mechanisms underlying the circadian rhythm of mood and the association with chronotype in MDD.

Methods: A total of 126 depressed patients, including 48 with DMV, 78 without, and 67 age/gender-matched healthy controls (HC) were recruited and underwent a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Spontaneous neural activity was investigated using amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and region of interest (ROI)-based functional connectivity (FC) analyses were conducted. The Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire (MEQ) was utilized to evaluate participant chronotypes and Pearson correlations were calculated between altered ALFF/FC values and MEQ scores in patients with MDD.

Results: Compared with NMV, DMV group exhibited lower MEQ scores, and increased ALFF values in the right orbital superior frontal gyrus (oSFG). We observed that increased FC between the left suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and supramarginal gyrus (SMG). ALFF in the oSFG and FC of rSCN-SMG were negatively correlated with MEQ scores.

Limitation: Some people's chronotypes information is missing.

Conclusion: Patients with DMV tended to be evening type and exhibited abnormal brain functions in frontal lobes. The synergistic changes between frontotemporal lobe, SCN-SMG maybe the characteristic of patients with DMV symptoms.

Keywords: Chronotype; Diurnal mood variation; Major depressive disorder; Resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

Brain / diagnostic imaging
Brain Mapping
Circadian Rhythm
Depressive Disorder, Major* / diagnostic imaging
Humans
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Neuroimaging