The default mode network and rumination in individuals at risk for depression

Summary & key facts

Researchers scanned the brains of women who were at risk for depression (high neuroticism) but had no current or past mood or anxiety disorders, and compared them with women with average neuroticism. The at-risk group (n=25) showed stronger activity in two parts of the brain’s default mode network—the medial prefrontal cortex and the inferior parietal lobule—after hearing criticism, but not after hearing praise, compared with controls (n=28). Greater activation in the inferior parietal lobule after criticism was linked to higher self-reported rumination scores.

Key facts:

• Study participants were all female. The at-risk group had high neuroticism and no current or lifetime mood or anxiety disorders (n=25). The comparison group had average neuroticism (n=28).
• Brain scans used functional MRI on a 3T Siemens Prisma scanner while participants heard recordings of criticism and praise.
• Compared with the average-neuroticism group, the at-risk group showed greater activation after hearing criticism (but not praise) in two default mode network regions: the medial prefrontal cortex and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL).
• Activation in the inferior parietal lobule specifically after criticism was significantly correlated with participants’ rumination scores (more IPL response associated with more rumination).
• The results suggest a difference in how a brain network linked to self-focused thinking responds to negative (critical) information in people at risk for depression. The study does not show that the brain differences cause depression.
• The sample was small and limited to females, and the study is correlational, so findings are preliminary and do not prove cause and effect.

Abstract

The default mode network (DMN) is a network of brain regions active during rest and self-referential thinking. Individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) show increased or decreased DMN activity relative to controls. DMN activity has been linked to a tendency to ruminate in MDD. It is unclear if individuals who are at risk for, but who have no current or past history of depression, also show differential DMN activity associated with rumination. We investigated whether females with high levels of neuroticism with no current or lifetime mood or anxiety disorders (n = 25) show increased DMN activation, specifically when processing negative self-referential information, compared with females with average levels of neuroticism (n = 28). Participants heard criticism and praise during functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans in a 3T Siemens Prisma scanner. The at-risk group showed greater activation in two DMN regions, the medial prefrontal cortex and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL), after hearing criticism, but not praise (relative to females with average levels of neuroticism). Criticism-specific activation in the IPL was significantly correlated with rumination. Individuals at risk for depression may, therefore, have an underlying neurocognitive vulnerability to use a brain network typically involved in thinking about oneself to preferentially ruminate about negative, rather than positive, information.

Topics

Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes Functional Brain Connectivity Studies Mental Health Research Topics

Categories

Cognitive Neuroscience Life Sciences Neuroscience

Tags

Anxiety Clinical psychology Cognition Default mode network Depression (economics) Developmental psychology Economics Functional magnetic resonance imaging Macroeconomics Mood Neuroscience Neuroticism Personality Psychiatry Psychology Rumination Social psychology

Conditions & symptoms

Anxiety Sadness or low mood