Hippocampal volume recovery with real-time functional MRI amygdala neurofeedback emotional training for posttraumatic stress disorder.

Background: Small hippocampal volume is a prevalent neurostructural abnormality in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, whether the hippocampal atrophy is the cause of disease symptoms or a pre-existing risk factor and whether it is a reversible alteration or a permanent trait are unclear. The trait- or state-dependent alteration could also differ among the hippocampal subfields.

Emotion self-regulation training in major depressive disorder using simultaneous real-time fMRI and EEG neurofeedback.

Simultaneous real-time fMRI and EEG neurofeedback (rtfMRI-EEG-nf) is an emerging neuromodulation approach, that enables simultaneous volitional regulation of both hemodynamic (BOLD fMRI) and electrophysiological (EEG) brain activities. Here we report the first application of rtfMRI-EEG-nf for emotion self-regulation training in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). In this proof-of-concept study, MDD patients in the experimental group (n = 16) used rtfMRI-EEG-nf during a happy emotion induction task to simultaneously upregulate two fMRI and two EEG activity measures relevant to MDD.

Connectome-wide search for functional connectivity locus associated with pathological rumination as a target for real-time fMRI neurofeedback intervention.

Real-time fMRI neurofeedback (rtfMRI-nf) enables noninvasive targeted intervention in brain activation with high spatial specificity. To achieve this promise of rtfMRI-nf, we introduced and demonstrated a data-driven framework to design a rtfMRI-nf intervention through the discovery of precise target location associated with clinical symptoms and neurofeedback signal optimization. Specifically, we identified the functional connectivity locus associated with rumination symptoms, utilizing a connectome-wide search in resting-state fMRI data from a large cohort of mood and anxiety disorder individuals (N = 223) and healthy controls (N = 45).

Brain activity mediators of PTSD symptom reduction during real-time fMRI amygdala neurofeedback emotional training.

Self-regulation of brain activation with real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging neurofeedback (rtfMRI-nf) is emerging as a promising treatment for psychiatric disorders. The association between the regulation and symptom reduction, however, has not been consistent, and the mechanisms underlying the symptom reduction remain poorly understood. The present study investigated brain activity mediators of the amygdala rtfMRI-nf training effect on combat veterans' PTSD symptom reduction.

Parental influences on neural mechanisms underlying emotion regulation.

Emotional intelligence allows for the recognition and regulation of emotions in the self and others, making it critical for healthy social and emotional development. Research has shown that the parent-child relationship and family environment are influential in the development of emotion regulation, one key component of emotional intelligence. However, the neurobiological processes underlying this relationship have yet to be fully explored.

Real-time fMRI amygdala neurofeedback positive emotional training normalized resting-state functional connectivity in combat veterans with and without PTSD: a connectome-wide investigation.

Self-regulation of brain activation using real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging neurofeedback (rtfMRI-nf) is an emerging approach for treating mood and anxiety disorders. The effect of neurofeedback training on resting-state functional connectivity warrants investigation as changes in spontaneous brain activation could reflect the association between sustained symptom relief and brain alteration. We investigated the effect of amygdala-focused rtfMRI-nf training on resting-state functional connectivity in combat veterans with and without posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who were trained to increase a feedback signal reflecting left amygdala activity while recalling positive autobiographical memories (Zotev et al.

Real-time fMRI neurofeedback training of the amygdala activity with simultaneous EEG in veterans with combat-related PTSD.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a chronic and disabling neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by insufficient top-down modulation of the amygdala activity by the prefrontal cortex. Real-time fMRI neurofeedback (rtfMRI-nf) is an emerging method with potential for modifying the amygdala-prefrontal interactions. We report the first controlled emotion self-regulation study in veterans with combat-related PTSD utilizing rtfMRI-nf of the amygdala activity.

Connectome-wide investigation of altered resting-state functional connectivity in war veterans with and without posttraumatic stress disorder.

Altered resting-state functional connectivity in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suggests neuropathology of the disorder. While seed-based fMRI connectivity analysis is often used for the studies, such analysis requires defining a seed location , which restricts search scope and could bias findings toward presupposed areas. Recently, a comprehensive exploratory voxel-wise connectivity analysis, the connectome-wide association approach, has been introduced using multivariate distance matrix regression (MDMR) for resting-state functional connectivity analysis.

Altered populations of natural killer cells, cytotoxic T lymphocytes, and regulatory T cells in major depressive disorder: Association with sleep disturbance.

A subset of individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) have impaired adaptive immunity characterized by a greater vulnerability to viral infection and a deficient response to vaccination along with a decrease in the number and/or activity of T cells and natural killer cells (NKC). Nevertheless, it remains unclear which specific subsets of lymphocytes are altered in MDD, a shortcoming we address here by utilizing an advanced fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) method that allows for the differentiation of important functionally-distinct lymphocyte sub-populations. Furthermore, despite evidence that sleep disturbance, which is a core symptom of MDD, is itself associated with alterations in lymphocyte distributions, there is a paucity of studies examining the contribution of sleep disturbance on lymphocyte populations in MDD populations.