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Clinical Article
Correlation between low-frequency amplitude and serum inflammatory factors in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in mild to moderate depression
MA Yue  HE Jiakai  GUO Chunlei  SUN Jifei  LU Xinyu  LUO Yi  GAO Shanshan  CHEN Qingyan  ZHANG Zhangjin  RONG Peijing  FANG Jiliang  LIU Yong 

MA Y, HE J K, GUO C L, et al. Correlation between low-frequency amplitude and serum inflammatory factors in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in mild to moderate depression[J]. Chin J Magn Reson Imaging, 2023, 14(9): 1-6, 18. DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2023.09.001.


[Abstract] Objective To explore the correlation between the brain functional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) and serum inflammatory factors in mild to moderate depression (MMD).Materials and Methods A total of 48 MMD patients and 51 healthy controls were included. All participants underwent functional MRI (fMRI) resting-state brain functional scans, and the levels of serum tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin 6 (IL-6), interleukin 2 (IL-2), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (HsCRP) were measured. The 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17) and 14-item Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA-14) were used to assess the participants' clinical symptoms. The DPABI software was used for preprocessing and statistical analysis of fMRI data to obtain the ALFF values of different brain regions between the two groups. Spearman rank correlation analysis was conducted to explore the relationships between ALFF values, clinical scales, and inflammatory factor levels.Results The MMD group had significantly higher scores on HAMD-17 and HAMA-14 compared to the healthy control group (P<0.05). The levels of IL-2, IL-6, TNF-α and HsCRP were elevated in the MMD group. Compared to the healthy control group, the MMD group showed increased ALFF values in the left temporal subregion and decreased values in the right temporal pole, left triangular part of the inferior frontal gyrus, and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. The correlation analysis revealed a positive correlation between the left temporal subregion and HAMD-17, HAMA-14, and HsCRP (r=0.591, P<0.001; r=0.549, P<0.001; r=0.479, P<0.001), a negative correlation between the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and TNF-α (r=-0.285, P=0.004), and a positive correlation between HsCRP and HAMD-17, HAMA-14 (r=0.723, P<0.001; r=0.667, P<0.001).Conclusions MMD patients exhibit abnormal immune-inflammatory factors, and there are ALFF differences in specific brain regions, mainly involving the limbic and default mode networks. The left temporal subregion and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex are abnormal brain regions associated with peripheral inflammatory factors, suggesting the involvement of more complex neuroimmune pathological mechanisms in MMD.
[Keywords] mild to moderate depression;resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging;magnetic resonance imaging;amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation;serum inflammatory cytokines

MA Yue1   HE Jiakai2   GUO Chunlei1   SUN Jifei1   LU Xinyu3   LUO Yi1   GAO Shanshan1   CHEN Qingyan1   ZHANG Zhangjin4   RONG Peijing2   FANG Jiliang1*   LIU Yong3*  

1 Department of Radiology, Guang'anmen Hospital, China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100053, China

2 Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing 100700, China

3 Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou 646099, China

4 School of Chinese Medicine, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong 999077, China

Corresponding author: Fang JL, E-mail: Fangmgh@163.com Liu Y, E-mail: 1909769139@qq.com

Conflicts of interest   None.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 82174282, 81774433); Science and Technology Innovation Project of China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine (No. CI2021A03301).
Received  2023-01-04
Accepted  2023-08-04
DOI: 10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2023.09.001
MA Y, HE J K, GUO C L, et al. Correlation between low-frequency amplitude and serum inflammatory factors in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging in mild to moderate depression[J]. Chin J Magn Reson Imaging, 2023, 14(9): 1-6, 18. DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2023.09.001.

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