Interhemispheric Asymmetries and Theta Activity in the Rostral Anterior Cingulate Cortex as EEG Signature of HIV-Related Depression: Gender Matters

Resting EEGs of 40 people living with HIV (PLWH) on long-term antiretroviral treatment were examined for z-scored deviations from a healthy control (normative database) to examine the main and interaction effects of depression and gender. Regions of interest were frontal (alpha) and central (all ban...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical EEG and neuroscience 2016-04, Vol.47 (2), p.96-104
Main Authors: Kremer, Heidemarie, Lutz, Franz P. C., McIntosh, Roger C., Dévieux, Jessy G., Ironson, Gail
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome
Adult
AIDS
Anti-HIV Agents - therapeutic use
Antidepressants
Antidepressive Agents - therapeutic use
Asymmetry
Authorship
Biomarkers
Depressive Disorder - complications
Depressive Disorder - drug therapy
Depressive Disorder - physiopathology
Depressive Disorder - psychology
Electroencephalography
Female
Gender
Gyrus Cinguli - physiopathology
HIV
HIV Infections - complications
HIV Infections - drug therapy
HIV Infections - physiopathology
HIV Infections - psychology
Human immunodeficiency virus
Humans
Hypotheses
Male
Medical imaging
Mental depression
Middle Aged
Mortality
Neurobiology
Sex Factors
Studies
Theta Rhythm - physiology
Tomography
Transgender Persons
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Summary:Resting EEGs of 40 people living with HIV (PLWH) on long-term antiretroviral treatment were examined for z-scored deviations from a healthy control (normative database) to examine the main and interaction effects of depression and gender. Regions of interest were frontal (alpha) and central (all bands) for interhemispheric asymmetries in quantitative EEGs and theta in the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) in low-resolution electromagnetic tomography (LORETA). Z-scored normed deviations of depressed PLWH, compared with nondepressed, showed right-dominant interhemispheric asymmetries in all regions. However, after adjusting for multiple testing, significance remained only central for theta, alpha, and beta. Reversed (left-dominant) frontal alpha asymmetry is a potential EEG marker of depression in the HIV negative population that was not reversed in depressive PLWH; however, corresponding with extant literature, gender had an effect on the size of frontal alpha asymmetry. The LORETA analysis revealed a trending interactional effect of depression and gender on theta activity in the rACC in Brodmann area 32. We found that compared to men, women had greater right-dominant frontal alpha-asymmetry and elevated theta activity in voxels of the rACC, which may indicate less likelihood of depression and a higher likelihood of response to antidepressants. In conclusion, subtle EEG deviations, such as right-dominant central theta, alpha, and beta asymmetries and theta activity in the rACC may mark HIV-related depressive symptoms and may predict the likelihood of response to antidepressants but gender effects need to be taken into account. Although this study introduced the use of LORETA to examine the neurophysiological correlates of negative affect in PLWH, further research is needed to assess the utility of this tool in diagnostics and treatment monitoring of depression in PLWH.
ISSN:1550-0594
2169-5202
DOI:10.1177/1550059414563306