Background: Affective disorders involve dysregulation of major biological stress systems (hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA)-axis, immune system, autonomic nervous system (ANS)).... Show moreBackground: Affective disorders involve dysregulation of major biological stress systems (hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA)-axis, immune system, autonomic nervous system (ANS)). Suchdysregulationshave rarely beensimultaneously examined across different stress systems.Methods: In the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety (n=2789), we investigated whether current or remitted depressive and/or anxiety disorders (based on the CIDI semi-structured interview), including specific symptom profiles, were associated with separate markers and cumulative indexes of the HPA-axis (cortisol awakening response, evening cortisol, dexamethasone suppression test cortisol), immune system (C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha), and ANS (heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, pre-ejection period).Results: Depressive andanxiety disorderswere significantlyassociated with changes in three biological stress systemsincluding HPA-axis hyperactivity, increased inflammatory activity, and a higher ANS tone, particularly for integrative and cumulative indexes of these stress systems (pFDR <.05) vs. controls. The strongest associations were seen with current disorders andcumulative indexes of the HPA-axis (13=.124, pFDR=.001), the immune system (13 =.057, pFDR=.032), and total cumulative index across stress systems (13=.102, pFDR=.004). Atypical, energy-related depression severity was linked to immune system markers (pFDR<0.001), melancholic depression severity to HPA-axis markers (pFDR=.032), and anxiety arousal severity to both HPA-axis and immune system markers (pFDR<0.05). Findings were partially explained by poorer lifestyle, more chronic diseases, or (especially for ANS-function) antidepressant use. Limitations: Cross-sectional analyses limit examination of temporal associations.Conclusion: Patients withdepressive and anxiety disorders showed consistent dysregulation across biological stress systems, particularly for current episodes.To understand stress system functionality in affective disorders, an integrated approach capturing cumulative stress indices within and across biological stress systems is important. Show less
Ayling, E.; Aghajani, M.; Fouche, J.P.; Wee, N. van der 2012
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can be used to examine the structural integrity of regional white matter and to map white matter tracts. DTI studies have been performed in several psychiatric... Show moreDiffusion tensor imaging (DTI) can be used to examine the structural integrity of regional white matter and to map white matter tracts. DTI studies have been performed in several psychiatric disorders, especially in those for which a developmental or a neuropsychiatric component was postulated. Thus far, the use of DTI has been very limited in panic disorder, social anxiety disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder, and somewhat more extensive in post-traumatic stress disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder. In most anxiety disorders, the results of DTI studies are in line with other structural and functional MRI findings and can be interpreted within the frameworks of existing models for the neurocircuitry of the various disorders. DTI findings could further enrich neurobiological models for anxiety disorders, although replication is often warranted, and studies in pediatric populations are lagging behind remarkably. Show less
