Distinct Insular Functional Connectivity Changes Related to Mood and Fatigue Improvements in Major Depressive Disorder Following Tai Chi Training: A Pilot Study
Anna Xu, Chloe S. Zimmerman, Sara W. Lazar, Yan Ma, Catherine E. Kerr, Albert Yeung
Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience May 28, 2020 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2020.00025 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pre-post intervention study (uncontrolled) Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 16 |
| Population | Adults with major depressive disorder |
| Intervention | Tai Chi |
| Duration | 10-week intervention, pre- and post-intervention assessments |
| Measures | SF-36 vitality subscale, Beck Depression Inventory, resting-state functional connectivity (seed-to-voxel, insula seed) |
| Topics | Depression |
| Keywords | Tai chi Fatigue Vitality Insula Resting-state functional connectivity |
| Key points | Tai Chi practice was followed by decreased depressed mood and increased vitality in 16 adults with major depressive disorder. Reduced depressed mood was associated with increased resting-state connectivity between the right anterior insula and the superior temporal gyrus and caudate, while increased vitality was associated with increased connectivity between the right posterior insula and sensorimotor regions. The authors argue these differential insula connectivity changes may be neural correlates of symptom improvement. |
Abstract
Objective: Tai chi (TC), a contemplative practice combining slow movements and deep breathing, has been shown to be clinically effective in alleviating depressive symptoms. Feelings of fatigue or low vitality often accompany major depressive disorder (MDD) though they are commonly overlooked and not well understood neurologically. By using resting state functional connectivity (rs-FC) using the insula as the seed, this study examines the relationship between mood and vitality symptoms in MDD and how they are impacted by TC training.Methods: Patients (N = 16) with MDD participated in a 10-week TC intervention. Self-report scores of vitality (using the SF-36 scale) and depressed mood (using the Beck Depression Inventory) as well as rs-fMRI were collected pre- and post-intervention. A seed-to-voxel approach was used to test whether changes in insular rs-FC were related to therapeutic improvement in MDD-related symptoms resulting from TC practice.Results: We found decreased self-reported depressed mood and increased vitality following the TC intervention. Furthermore, decreases in depressed mood were associated with increased rs-FC between the right anterior insula (AIC) and superior temporal gyrus and caudate (cluster-corrected p < 0.05). Increased vitality was associated with increased rs-FC between the right posterior insula (PIC) and regions associated with sensorimotor processes (cluster-corrected p < 0.05).Conclusion: These results provide support for differential changes in insula connectivity as neural correlates of symptom improvement in MDD.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on depression, most cited first.
Citations in the library
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- Mindfulness meditation training alters cortical representations of interoceptive attention Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience June 11, 2012
- Minding one’s emotions: Mindfulness training alters the neural expression of sadness. Emotion February 1, 2010
and 12 more in the library