Connectome Gradient Dysfunction in Major Depression and Its Association with Gene Expression Profiles

Abstract

Abstract Background Patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) exhibit concurrent deficits in sensory processing and high-order cognitive functions such as self-awareness and rumination. Connectome mapping studies have suggested a principal primary-to-transmodal gradient in functional brain networks, supporting the spectrum from sensation to cognition. However, whether this principal connectome gradient is disrupted in patients with MDD and how this disruption is associated with gene expression profiles remain unclear. Methods Using a large cohort of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 2,234 participants (1,150 patients with MDD and 1,084 healthy controls) recruited at 10 sites, we investigated MDD-related alterations in the principal connectome gradient. We further used Neurosynth and postmortem gene expression data to assess the cognitive functions and transcriptional profiles related to the gradient alterations in MDD, respectively. Results Relative to controls, patients with MDD exhibited abnormal global topography of the principal primary-to-transmodal gradient, as indicated by reduced explanation ratio, gradient range, and gradient variation (Cohen’s d = −0.16∼-0.21). Focal alterations of gradient scores were mostly in the primary systems involved in sensory processing and in the transmodal systems implicated in high-order cognition. The transcriptional profiles explained 53.9% of the spatial variance in the altered gradient patterns, with the most correlated genes enriched in transsynaptic signaling and calcium ion binding. Conclusions These results highlight the dysfunction of the core connectome hierarchy in MDD and its linkage with gene expression profiles, providing insights into the neurobiological and molecular genetic underpinnings of sensory-cognitive deficits in this disorder.