The DOI matches its Crossref record; 97 of the 97 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Exercise effects on depression: Possible neural mechanisms
Open accessAbstract
Depression is a syndrome of stress- and emotion-dysregulation, involving compromised structural integrity of frontal-limbic networks. Meta-analytic evidence indicates that volumetric reductions in the hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, striatum, and amygdala, as well as compromised white matter integrity are frequently observed in depressed adults. Exercise has shown promise as an effective treatment for depression, but few studies have attempted to characterize or identify the neural mechanisms of these effects. In this review, we examined the overlap between structural brain abnormalities in depression and the effects of exercise on brain structure in adults, to highlight possible neural mechanisms that may mediate the positive effects of exercise on depressive symptoms. The prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus, and corpus callosum emerged as structural neural markers that may serve as targets for exercise-based treatments for depression. These findings highlight the need for randomized exercise interventions to test these proposed neurobiological mechanisms of exercise on depression.
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“At present, most studies report that the cause of depression is related to the dysfunction of neurotransmitters such as serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine), dopamine, and norepinephrine [61].”
From Systematic review and meta-analysis of the effects of exercise on depression in adolescents (2022) · cites this paper as [61]
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“Indeed, most of the brain regions that have enhanced activation and function following exercise training are well known for their importance in affective reactivity within the DMN pathways, particularly the ventromedial PFC and its regulation of reactivity within subcortical and insular brain regions (83).”
From The Role of Exercise in Management of Mental Health Disorders: An Integrative Review (2021) · cites this paper as [83]
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Cites
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Exercise training increases size of hippocampus and improves memory
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Self-citationA Neurotrophic Model for Stress-Related Mood Disorders
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“Similar to findings of the hippocampus, abnormalities in the ACC may precede the onset of depression and may persist after remission from a depressive episode, suggesting that volume reductions in the ACC may represent a neurodevelopmental biomarker of risk for depression (49).”
BackgroundResultAerobic Exercise Training Increases Brain Volume in Aging Humans
Colcombe, S. J., Erickson, K. I., Scalf, P. E., Kim, J. S., Prakash, R., McAuley, E., Elavsky, S., Marquez, D. X., Hu, L., & Kramer, A. F. (2006) · The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences · doi:10.1093/gerona/61.11.1166 · Cited by 2,134
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An in vivo correlate of exercise-induced neurogenesis in the adult dentate gyrus
Pereira, A. C., Huddleston, D. E., Brickman, A. M., Sosunov, A. A., Hen, R., McKhann, G. M., Sloan, R., Gage, F. H., Brown, T. R., & Small, S. A. (2007) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0611721104 · Cited by 1,353
Adult hippocampal neurogenesis in depression
Sahay, A., & Hen, R. (2007) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn1969 · Cited by 1,206
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Sorted by citations
Kandola, A., Ashdown-Franks, G., Hendrikse, J., Sabiston, C. M., & Stubbs, B. (2019) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.09.040 · Cited by 1,309
Singh, B., Olds, T., Curtis, R., Dumuid, D., Virgara, R., Watson, A., Szeto, K., O'Connor, E., Ferguson, T., Eglitis, E., et al. (2023) · British Journal of Sports Medicine · doi:10.1136/bjsports-2022-106195 · Cited by 1,049
Effects of Exercise on Brain and Cognition Across Age Groups and Health States
Stillman, C. M., Esteban‐Cornejo, I., Brown, B. M., Bender, C. M., & Erickson, K. I. (2020) · Trends in Neurosciences · doi:10.1016/j.tins.2020.04.010 · Cited by 444
Self-citationThe Role of Exercise in Management of Mental Health Disorders: An Integrative Review
Smith, P. J., & Merwin, R. M. (2021) · Annual Review of Medicine · doi:10.1146/annurev-med-060619-022943 · Cited by 360
Sedentary behaviors and risk of depression: a meta-analysis of prospective studies
Huang, Y., Li, L., Gan, Y., Wang, C., Jiang, H., Cao, S., & Lu, Z. (2020) · Translational Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41398-020-0715-z · Cited by 370
Metadata
- Authors
- Gujral, S., Aizenstein, H., Reynolds, C. F., Butters, M. A., & Erickson, K. I.
- Affiliations
- University of Pittsburgh (US)
- Corresponding author
- Gujral, Swathi
- Venue
- General Hospital Psychiatry
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2017-11
- Volume
- 49
- Pages
- 2-10
- ISSN
- 0163-8343 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC6437683
- OpenAlex
- W2767771037
- Cited by
- 334
- References
- 97
- Citations by year
- 2026: 33 · 2025: 42 · 2024: 55 · 2023: 67 · 2022: 40 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 40 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 10
- FWCI
- 2.15
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Licence
- www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
- www.elsevier.com/legal/tdmrep-license (tdm)
- www.elsevier.com/open-access/userlicense/1.0/ (am, 371 d)
- doi.org/10.15223/policy-017 (stm-asf)
- doi.org/10.15223/policy-037 (stm-asf)
- doi.org/10.15223/policy-012 (stm-asf)
- doi.org/10.15223/policy-029 (stm-asf)
- doi.org/10.15223/policy-004 (stm-asf)
- Locations
- General Hospital Psychiatry (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation (P30 MH090333, R01 DK095172, P30 AG024827, P30 MH90333, P50 AG005133, 2014192810)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology (medical) › Treatment of Major Depression
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Physical Activity and Health
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Keywords
- physical activity, depression, neural mechanisms, brain structure, hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, corpus callosum, white matter integrity, structural brain abnormalities, neuroplasticity
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Brain, Depression, Depressive Disorder, Exercise Therapy, Humans, Middle Aged, Young Adult
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