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Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Carl, H; Walsh, E; Eisenlohr-Moul, T; Minkel, J; Crowther, A; Moore, T; Gibbs, D; Petty, C; Bizzell, J; Dichter, GS; Smoski, MJ
Published in: J Affect Disord
October 2016

BACKGROUND: The purpose of the present investigation was to evaluate whether pre-treatment neural activation in response to rewards is a predictor of clinical response to Behavioral Activation Therapy for Depression (BATD), an empirically validated psychotherapy that decreases depressive symptoms by increasing engagement with rewarding stimuli and reducing avoidance behaviors. METHODS: Participants were 33 outpatients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and 20 matched controls. We examined group differences in activation, and the capacity to sustain activation, across task runs using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and the monetary incentive delay (MID) task. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to investigate whether pre-treatment neural responses predicted change in depressive symptoms over the course of BATD treatment. RESULT: MDD and Control groups differed in sustained activation during reward outcomes in the right nucleus accumbens, such that the MDD group experienced a significant decrease in activation in this region from the first to second task run relative to controls. Pretreatment anhedonia severity and pretreatment task-related reaction times were predictive of response to treatment. Furthermore, sustained activation in the anterior cingulate cortex during reward outcomes predicted response to psychotherapy; patients with greater sustained activation in this region were more responsive to BATD treatment. LIMITATION: The current study only included a single treatment condition, thus it unknown whether these predictors of treatment response are specific to BATD or psychotherapy in general. CONCLUSION: Findings add to the growing body of literature suggesting that the capacity to sustain neural responses to rewards may be a critical endophenotype of MDD.

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Published In

J Affect Disord

DOI

EISSN

1573-2517

Publication Date

October 2016

Volume

203

Start / End Page

204 / 212

Location

Netherlands

Related Subject Headings

  • Treatment Outcome
  • Reward
  • Psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry
  • Nucleus Accumbens
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Humans
  • Gyrus Cinguli
 

Citation

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Chicago
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MLA
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Carl, H., Walsh, E., Eisenlohr-Moul, T., Minkel, J., Crowther, A., Moore, T., … Smoski, M. J. (2016). Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord, 203, 204–212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.06.005
Carl, Hannah, Erin Walsh, Tory Eisenlohr-Moul, Jared Minkel, Andrew Crowther, Tyler Moore, Devin Gibbs, et al. “Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder.J Affect Disord 203 (October 2016): 204–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2016.06.005.
Carl H, Walsh E, Eisenlohr-Moul T, Minkel J, Crowther A, Moore T, et al. Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord. 2016 Oct;203:204–12.
Carl, Hannah, et al. “Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder.J Affect Disord, vol. 203, Oct. 2016, pp. 204–12. Pubmed, doi:10.1016/j.jad.2016.06.005.
Carl H, Walsh E, Eisenlohr-Moul T, Minkel J, Crowther A, Moore T, Gibbs D, Petty C, Bizzell J, Dichter GS, Smoski MJ. Sustained anterior cingulate cortex activation during reward processing predicts response to psychotherapy in major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord. 2016 Oct;203:204–212.
Journal cover image

Published In

J Affect Disord

DOI

EISSN

1573-2517

Publication Date

October 2016

Volume

203

Start / End Page

204 / 212

Location

Netherlands

Related Subject Headings

  • Treatment Outcome
  • Reward
  • Psychotherapy
  • Psychiatry
  • Nucleus Accumbens
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Humans
  • Gyrus Cinguli