Regional fMRI hypoactivation and altered functional connectivity during emotion processing in nonmedicated depressed patients with bipolar II disorder.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Although the amygdala and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex have been implicated in the pathophysiology of bipolar I disorder, the neural mechanisms underlying bipolar II disorder remain unknown. The authors examined neural activity in response to negative emotional faces during an emotion perception task that reliably activates emotion regulatory regions.

Method

Twenty-one nonmedicated depressed bipolar II patients and 21 healthy comparison subjects underwent functional MRI (fMRI) while performing an emotional face-matching task. Within- and between-group whole-brain fMRI activation and seed-based connectivity analyses were conducted.

Results

In depressed bipolar II patients, random-effects between-group fMRI analyses revealed a significant reduction in activ

SUBMITTER: Vizueta N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3740182 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature