Neuromelanin-Sensitive MRI Contrast and Chronic Depression in Young Women

Does low dopaminergic function distinguish a chronic from nonchronic course of depression in young women aged 20 to 24 years?In this cohort study, 105 women for whom a course of depressive disorders was prospectively characterized from ages 14 to 22 years were recruited for assessment of neuromelanin-sensitive magnetic resonance imaging (NM-MRI), a marker of long-term midbrain dopamine function. Young women with a chronic course of depression were characterized by decreased NM-MRI contrast relative to those with nonchronic depression and those with no lifetime history of depression.Results of this study suggest that low dopaminergic function plays a role in the etiopathophysiology of chronic depression.

Corresponding Author: Greg Perlman, PhD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, Renaissance School of Medicine, Stony Brook University, HSC T10-060, 101 Nicolls Rd, Stony Brook, NY 11794-8101 (greg.perlman@stonybrookmedicine.edu).

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