Altered cardiac timing neural avalanche in major depressive disorder
Poster No:
1940
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Qian Liao1, Li Xue1, Cong Pei1, Junneng Shao1, Han Zhang1, Lingling Hua2, Hongliang Zhou3, Zhijian Yao2, Qing Lu1
Institutions:
1School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, China, 2Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China, 3Department of Psychology, the Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Junneng Shao
School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University
Nanjing, China
School of Biological Sciences & Medical Engineering, Southeast University
Nanjing, China
Lingling Hua
Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University
Nanjing, China
Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University
Nanjing, China
Zhijian Yao
Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University
Nanjing, China
Department of Psychiatry, the Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University
Nanjing, China
Introduction:
A substantial body of research has demonstrated that the brain operates near a critical state to achieve optimal function (Habibollahi et al., 2023). Deviations from this state have been linked to psychological disorders, such as major depressive disorder (MDD) (Xin et al., 2022). However, limited research has employed neural avalanche analysis to investigate alterations in criticality dynamics in MDD. Furthermore, these features may overlap with those seen in other disorders, highlighting the importance of considering other clinical characteristics of MDD. While clinical evidence suggests that MDD is associated with dysfunctions in heart-brain interactions (Catrambone et al., 2021), these have not been incorporated into the neural avalanche analysis framework. Additionally, studies indicate that emotional and cognitive behaviors are modulated by the cardiac cycle (Skora et al., 2022). Therefore, this study aims to investigate whether brain avalanche dynamics vary across the cardiac cycle and how these dynamics differ in individuals with MDD.
Methods:
We simultaneously collected 5-minute resting-state magnetoencephalography (MEG) and electrocardiogram (ECG) data from 65 MDD patients and 63 healthy control (HC) participants. We first defined neural avalanches across the entire brain and at the level of functional brain networks during different phases of the cardiac cycle (systole vs. diastole). Critical dynamics analyses were then performed for both phases, and avalanche criticality metrics were computed to measure deviations from criticality. We calculated three critical-state metrics (branching ratio, σ ; kappa coefficient, κ ; gamma coefficient γ) for two groups in systole and diastole to assess the system's proximity to a critical state. The branching ratio characterizes the dynamic properties of neural cascade propagation (Shew et al., 2009). The kappa coefficient reflects the scale of avalanche events, providing a quantitative evaluation of the intensity of local events within the system (Habibollahi et al., 2023). The gamma coefficient measures the overlap and scale-invariant features of avalanche shapes, revealing the system's self-similarity (Heiney et al., 2021). These three metrics capture the distinct features of critical systems in terms of dynamic propagation, size distribution, and self-similarity, forming a comprehensive framework for observing the critical state of the system. A mixed-design two-way ANOVA was conducted to examine the main effects and interaction effects of cardiac phase and depression on above avalanche criticality metrics.
Results:
First, whole-brain avalanche dynamics showed that the branching ratio and kappa coefficient were significantly lower during systole compared to diastole in both the HC and MDD groups. Next, whole-brain avalanche dynamics in MDD deviated from the critical state observed in HC, especially in the default mode network (DMN). Notably, both the branching ratio and the kappa coefficient within the DMN were significantly lower during diastole compared to systole in MDD. These findings suggest that alterations in cardiac timing neural avalanche dynamics at the functional level may serve as a distinctive feature of MDD.
Conclusions:
Our study highlights the significant role of cardiac cycle activity in shaping intrinsic neural activity. By investigating the modulation of brain network criticality by cardiac signals, we provide new theoretical insights into the abnormal neural dynamics of heart-brain interactions in MDD patients. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the interaction between the heart and brain, offering potential directions for future therapeutic interventions.
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Psychiatric (eg. Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia) 2
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
MEG 1
Perception, Attention and Motor Behavior:
Perception and Attention Other
Keywords:
DISORDERS
MEG
Other - Major depressive disorder; Neural avalanche；Brain-heart interaction; Criticality;
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
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Provide references using APA citation style.
Habibollahi F. (2023) Critical dynamics arise during structured information presentation within embodied in vitro neuronal networks. Nat Commun 14:5287.
Heiney K. (2021) Criticality, Connectivity, and Neural Disorder: A Multifaceted Approach to Neural Computation. Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience 15.
Shew WL. (2009) Neuronal Avalanches Imply Maximum Dynamic Range in Cortical Networks at Criticality. J Neurosci 29:15595–15600.
Skora LI. (2022) The functional role of cardiac activity in perception and action. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 137:104655.
Xin Y. (2022) Electroconvulsive therapy modulates critical brain dynamics in major depressive disorder patients. Brain Stimulation: Basic, Translational, and Clinical Research in Neuromodulation 15:214–225.