Multi-dimensional modulations of α and γ cortical dynamics following mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in Major Depressive Disorder.
Poppy L A Schoenberg, Anne E. M. Speckens
Cognitive Neurodynamics February 2015 DOI: 10.1007/s11571-014-9308-y (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 51 |
| Population | Patients with recurrent depressive disorder |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) |
| Topics | Depression Meditation |
| Keywords | EEG Power Erd/ers Oscillatory EEG Α-band coherence Γ-band |
| Key findings | MBCT significantly downregulated alpha and gamma EEG power during an affective Go/NoGo task, with enhanced alpha desynchronisation for negative material and attenuated alpha desynchronisation for positive material. Increased left intra-hemispheric alpha coherence in a fronto-parietal circuit accompanied these changes, and alpha-ERD change correlated with reduced depressive severity and increased self-compassion. The authors propose that MBCT modulates distinct cortical oscillatory bands with separate excitatory and inhibitory effects. |
Abstract
To illuminate candidate neural working mechanisms of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) in the treatment of recurrent depressive disorder, parallel to the potential interplays between modulations in electro-cortical dynamics and depressive symptom severity and self-compassionate experience. Linear and nonlinear α and γ EEG oscillatory dynamics were examined concomitant to an affective Go/NoGo paradigm, pre-to-post MBCT or natural wait-list, in 51 recurrent depressive patients. Specific EEG variables investigated were; (1) induced event-related (de-) synchronisation (ERD/ERS), (2) evoked power, and (3) inter-/intra-hemispheric coherence. Secondary clinical measures included depressive severity and experiences of self-compassion. MBCT significantly downregulated α and γ power, reflecting increased cortical excitability. Enhanced α-desynchronisation/ERD was observed for negative material opposed to attenuated α-ERD towards positively valenced stimuli, suggesting activation of neural networks usually hypoactive in depression, related to positive emotion regulation. MBCT-related increase in left-intra-hemispheric α-coherence of the fronto-parietal circuit aligned with these synchronisation dynamics. Ameliorated depressive severity and increased self-compassionate experience pre-to-post MBCT correlated with α-ERD change. The multi-dimensional neural mechanisms of MBCT pertain to task-specific linear and non-linear neural synchronisation and connectivity network dynamics. We propose MBCT-related modulations in differing cortical oscillatory bands have discrete excitatory (enacting positive emotionality) and inhibitory (disengaging from negative material) effects, where mediation in the α and γ bands relates to the former.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on depression, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metacognitive awareness and prevention of relapse in depression: Empirical evidence. Residually depressed patients and nondepressed controls; recovered depressed patients | 2002 | Observational cohort with intervention components | |
| Psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression: fMRI-measured brain mechanisms. Patients with treatment-resistant depression | 2017 | Observational cohort | n = 19 |
| Antidepressant effects of a single dose of ayahuasca in patients with recurrent depression: a preliminary report Patients with a depressive disorder | 2015 | Observational study | |
| Concomitant BDNF and sleep slow wave changes indicate ketamine-induced plasticity in major depressive disorder Patients with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder | 2012 | Observational cohort | n = 30 |
| Altered peripheral immune profiles in treatment-resistant depression: response to ketamine and prediction of treatment outcome Healthy controls and actively depressed patients with treatment-resistant depression... | 2017 | Observational cohort | n = 59 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 10
- A systematic review of the neurophysiology of mindfulness on EEG oscillations Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 2015
- Mindfulness-Based Blood Pressure Reduction (MB-BP): Stage 1 single-arm clinical trial PLoS One November 27, 2019
- Mapping meditative states and stages with electrophysiology: concepts, classifications, and methods. Current Opinion in Psychology August 1, 2019
- Mindfulness meditators show altered distributions of early and late neural activity markers of attention in a response inhibition task PLoS One August 6, 2019
- Classification of mindfulness experiences from gamma-band effective connectivity: Application of machine-learning algorithms on resting, breathing, and body scan. Computer methods and programs in biomedicine December 1, 2024
and 5 more in the library
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