Decreased functional connectivity between the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and lingual gyrus in Alzheimer's disease patients with depression

Publication date: 30 May 2017
Source:Behavioural Brain Research, Volume 326
Author(s): Xiaozheng Liu, Wei Chen, Hongtao Hou, Xingli Chen, Jiangtao Zhang, Jian Liu, Zhongwei Guo, Guanghui Bai
BackgroundDepression is one of the most common psychiatric symptoms in Alzheimer's disease (AD), occurring in up to 40% of AD patients. It influences the cognitive function of patients and increases the burden on their caregivers. Currently, there are few effective medical treatments for reducing the symptoms of depression in AD patients. Understanding the underlying neurobiological mechanisms in AD patients with depression (D-AD) is crucial for developing effective interventions. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is an important brain region involved in emotional and cognitive processing. Several functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have shown that patients with major depressive disorder have structural, functional, and metabolic abnormalities in the ACC.MethodsWe investigated the resting-state functional connectivity (FC) of ACC subregions in 15 D-AD patients and 17 non-depressed AD (nD-AD) patients, by parcellating the ACC into the rostral and dorsal ACC (dACC).ResultsOur results revealed that D-AD patients have decreased FC between the dACC and the right occipital lobe and right lingual gyrus, compared with nD-AD patients.ConclusionsDecreased FC between the dACC and the right occipital lobe and right lingual gyrus may play an important role in the neuropathophysiology of depression in AD.



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