Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Correlates of Emotional Word Encoding and Recognition in Depression and Anxiety Disorders

van Tol, Marie-José; Demenescu, Liliana R.; van der Wee, Nic J.A.; Kortekaas, Rudie; Marjan M.A., Nielen; Boer, J.A. Den; Renken, Remco J.; van Buchem, Mark A.; Zitman, Frans G.; Aleman, André; Veltman, Dick J.

doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.11.016

« Previous Next »Biological Psychiatry
Volume 71, Issue 7 , Pages 593-602, 1 April 2012

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Correlates of Emotional Word Encoding and Recognition in Depression and Anxiety Disorders

Marie-José van Tol
- Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Address correspondence to Marie-José van Tol, Ph.D., Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, Antonius Deusinglaan 2, 9713 AW Groningen, The Netherlands
Liliana R. Demenescu
- Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- RWTH Aachen University, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Aachen, Germany
Nic J.A. van der Wee
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
Rudie Kortekaas
- Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Marjan M.A. Nielen
- Department of Psychiatry, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
J.A. Den Boer
- Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Remco J. Renken
- Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Mark A. van Buchem
- Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
- Department of Radiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
Frans G. Zitman
- Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
André Aleman
- Neuroimaging Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
- Department of Psychology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Dick J. Veltman
- Department of Psychiatry, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Received 22 June 2011; received in revised form 17 November 2011; accepted 21 November 2011. published online 30 December 2011.

Background

Major depressive disorder (MDD), panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder are among the most prevalent and frequently co-occurring psychiatric disorders in adults and may be characterized by a common deficiency in processing of emotional information.

Methods

We used functional magnetic resonance imaging during the performance of an emotional word encoding and recognition paradigm in patients with MDD (n = 51), comorbid MDD and anxiety (n = 59), panic disorder and/or social anxiety disorder without comorbid MDD (n = 56), and control subjects (n = 49). In addition, we studied effects of illness severity, regional brain volume, and antidepressant use.

Results

Patients with MDD, prevalent anxiety disorders, or both showed a common hyporesponse in the right hippocampus during positive (>neutral) word encoding compared with control subjects. During negative encoding, increased insular activation was observed in both depressed groups (MDD and MDD + anxiety), whereas increased amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex activation during positive word encoding were observed as depressive state-dependent effects in MDD only. During recognition, anxiety patients showed increased inferior frontal gyrus activation. Overall, effects were unaffected by medication use and regional brain volume.

Conclusions

Hippocampal blunting during positive word encoding is a generic effect in depression and anxiety disorders, which may constitute a common vulnerability factor. Increased insular and amygdalar involvement during negative word encoding may underlie heightened experience of, and an inability to disengage from, negative emotions in depressive disorders. Our results emphasize a common neurobiological deficiency in both MDD and anxiety disorders, which may mark a general insensitiveness to positive information.

Key Words: Emotional memory , fMRI , major depressive disorder , memory function , panic disorder , social anxiety disorder