Functional Connectivity of the Anterior Cingulate Cortex in Depression and in Health

The first voxel-level resting-state functional connectivity (FC) neuroimaging analysis of depression of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) showed in 282 patients with major depressive disorder compared with 254 controls, some higher, and some lower FCs. However, in 125 unmedicated patients, primarily increases of FC were found: of the subcallosal anterior cingulate with the lateral orbitofrontal cortex, of the pregenual/supracallosal anterior cingulate with the medial orbitofrontal cortex, and of parts of the anterior cingulate with the inferior frontal gyrus, superior parietal lobule, and with early cortical visual areas. In the 157 medicated patients, these and other FCs were lower than in the unmedicated group. Parcellation was performed based on the FC of individual ACC voxels in healthy controls. A pregenual subdivision had high FC with medial orbitofrontal cortex areas, and a supracallosal subdivision had high FC with lateral orbitofrontal cortex and inferior frontal gyrus. The high FC in depression between the lateral orbitofrontal cortex and the subcallosal parts of the ACC provides a mechanism for more non-reward information transmission to the ACC, contributing to depression. The high FC between the medial orbitofrontal cortex and supracallosal ACC in depression may also contribute to depressive symptoms.