1.Association between cognitive function and anterior cingulate cortex gamma-amino-butyric acid concentrations in patients with depression before and after treatment
Siyan ZAN ; Congwen KU ; Shaokun ZHAO ; Ruihua MA ; Sijia LIU ; Jing SHI ; Yingna LI ; Hui LI ; Xuan WANG ; Fude YANG ; Yunlong TAN ; Baopeng TIAN ; Zhiren WANG
Chinese Mental Health Journal 2024;38(9):737-744
Objective:To explore the association between cognitive function and the level of gamma-amino-butyric acid(GABA)in anterior cingulate cortex(ACC)before and after treatment in patients with major depres-sion disorder.Methods:Totally 31 medication-naive patients with major depression disorder meeting the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,Fifth Edition(DSM-5)and 33 normal controls were col-lected.Each eligible patient received treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor agents for 8 weeks.The MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery(MCCB)was used to evaluate the cognitive function.By means of 1H magnetic resonance spectroscopy,anterior cingulate cortex GABA concentrations were measured.Results:At base-line,the concentration of ACC GABA relative to water(GABA+/W)was lower in the patient group than in the control group(P<0.05)and increased after treatment(P<0.05).ACC GABA+/W was negatively associated with verbal learning and visual memory score in patient group at baseline(correlation coefficient and P value were r=-0.40,P<0.05;r=-0.42,P<0.05,respectively).The ACC GABA+/W difference resulted of treatment in patient group was positively associated with the difference of working memory score and the difference of reasoning and problem-solving score(correlation coefficient and P value were r=0.58,P<0.05;r=0.66,P<0.05,respec-tively).Conclusion:The cognitive dysfunction of patients with major depression disorder may not be related to the degree of depression and anxiety.And improvement of cognitive function may be associated with increase of ACC GABA concentrations.