Neural response to pleasant stimuli in anhedonia: an fMRI study
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the neural correlates of affect processing in depressed anhedonic patients and healthy controls. Whole brain functional magnetic resonance imaging scans were obtained from seven females with a diagnosis of chronic unipolar major depression and high levels of anhedonia, and seven healthy females, while they were presented with positive valence and neutral images. Patients, compared to controls, showed decreased activation in medial frontal cortex, and increased activation in inferior frontal cortex, anterior cingulate, thalamus, putamen and insula. Reduced activation in medial frontal cortex may underlie abnormal positive affect processing in patients. Increases in neural activation in putamen and thalamus, previously found in transient sadness, and anterior cingulate could point to an involvement of these structures in anhedonia.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Functional neuroimaging studies in MDD consistently indicate hypoactivation in reward-processing regions, including the dorsal and ventral striatum, medial prefrontal cortex, pregenual and subgenual anterior cingulate, and medial frontal gyrus.
“Functional neuroimaging studies in MDD have consistently indicated hypoactivation in reward-processing regions, including the dorsal and ventral striatum [210-214] and a host of other reward structures, including the medial prefrontal cortex [215,216], the pregenual and subgenual anterior cingulate, and the medial frontal gyrus [217,218].”
From Reward circuitry dysfunction in psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders and genetic syndromes: animal models and clinical findings (2012) · cites this paper as [213]
Cites
An inventory for measuring depression
BECK, A. T. (1961) · Archives of General Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1961.01710120031004 · Cited by 38,032 · see citing works
Hamilton, M. (1960) · Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry · doi:10.1136/jnnp.23.1.56 · Cited by 32,817 · see citing works
Brain magnetic resonance imaging with contrast dependent on blood oxygenation.
Ogawa, S., Lee, T. M., Kay, A. R., & Tank, D. W. (1990) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.87.24.9868 · Cited by 6,483 · see citing works
Cognitive and emotional influences in anterior cingulate cortex
Bush, G., Luu, P., & Posner, M. I. (2000) · Trends in Cognitive Sciences · doi:10.1016/s1364-6613(00)01483-2 · Cited by 6,259 · see citing works
International Affective Picture System (IAPS) : Technical Manual and Affective Ratings
Lang, P. J. (1995) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 2,870 · see citing works
Abstract reward and punishment representations in the human orbitofrontal cortex
O'Doherty, J., Kringelbach, M. L., Rolls, E. T., Hornak, J., & Andrews, C. (2001) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/82959 · Cited by 2,003 · see citing works
Limbic-cortical dysregulation: a proposed model of depression
(1997) · The Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences · doi:10.1176/jnp.9.3.471 · Cited by 1,585 · see citing works
Brain magnetic resonance imaging with contrast-dependent oxygenation
Ogawa, S. (1990) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 1,367 · see citing works
Bullmore, E. T., Suckling, J., Overmeyer, S., Rabe-Hesketh, S., Taylor, E., & Brammer, M. J. (1999) · IEEE Transactions on Medical Imaging · doi:10.1109/42.750253 · Cited by 1,088 · see citing works
Self-citationNeuroanatomical correlates of pleasant and unpleasant emotion
Lane, R. D., Reiman, E. M., Bradley, M. M., Lang, P. J., Ahern, G. L., Davidson, R. J., & Schwartz, G. E. (1997) · Neuropsychologia · doi:10.1016/s0028-3932(97)00070-5 · Cited by 830 · see citing works
Neuroanatomical correlates of happiness, sadness, and disgust
Lane, R. D., Reiman, E. M., Ahern, G. L., SCHWARTZ, G. E. R., & Davidson, R. J. (1997) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.154.7.926 · Cited by 742 · see citing works
Brain activity during transient sadness and happiness in healthy women
(1995) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.152.3.341 · Cited by 737 · see citing works
The anatomy of melancholia – focal abnormalities of cerebral blood flow in major depression
Bench, C. J., Friston, K. J., Brown, R. G., Scott, L. C., Frackowiak, R. S. J., & Dolan, R. J. (1992) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s003329170003806x · Cited by 717 · see citing works
Self-citationDrevets, W. C., & Raichle, M. E. (1998) · Cognition & Emotion · doi:10.1080/026999398379646 · Cited by 702 · see citing works
Pizzagalli, D., Pascual-Marqui, R. D., Nitschke, J. B., Oakes, T. R., Larson, C. L., Abercrombie, H. C., Schaefer, S. M., Koger, J. V., Benca, R. M., & Davidson, R. J. (2001) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.158.3.405 · Cited by 630 · see citing works
Cytoarchitecture and neural afferents of orbitofrontal cortex in the brain of the monkey
Morecraft, R. J., Geula, C., & Mesulam, M. ‐. (1992) · Journal of Comparative Neurology · doi:10.1002/cne.903230304 · Cited by 539 · see citing works
Generic brain activation mapping in functional magnetic resonance imaging: A nonparametric approach
Brammer, M. J., Bullmore, E. T., Simmons, A., Williams, S., Grasby, P. M., Howard, R. J., Woodruff, P. W. R., & Rabe‐Hesketh, S. (1997) · Magnetic Resonance Imaging · doi:10.1016/s0730-725x(97)00135-5 · Cited by 470 · see citing works
Self-citationAssessing Anhedonia in Psychiatric Patients
FAWCETT, J. A. (1983) · Archives of General Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1983.01790010081010 · Cited by 419 · see citing works
Functional MRI Study of the Cognitive Generation of Affect
Teasdale, J. D., Howard, R. J., Cox, S. G., Ha, Y., Brammer, M. J., Williams, S., & Checkley, S. A. (1999) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.156.2.209 · Cited by 288 · see citing works
Self-citationNorthoff, G. (2000) · Cerebral Cortex · doi:10.1093/cercor/10.1.93 · Cited by 262 · see citing works
(1996) · PubMed · Cited by 212 · see citing works
Anhedonia: a neglected symptom of psychopathology
Snaith, P. R. (1993) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291700026428 · Cited by 179 · see citing works
Seminars in Basic Neurosciences
George, M. S. (1995) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.152.4.639-a · Cited by 174 · see citing works
Co-Planar Stereotaxic Atlas of the Human Brain-3-Dimensional Proportional System
Talairach, J. (1988) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 149 · see citing works
Anhedonie - nosologieübergreifendes Korrelat einer Dysfunktion des dopaminergen Verstärkungssystems?
Heinz, A. (1999) · Der Nervenarzt · doi:10.1007/s001150050454 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
365. Emotion-inducing stimuli processing in alexithymia: an fMRI study
Berthoz, S., Eric Artiges, A., de Moortele, P. V., Poline, J.-B., Rouquette, S., & Martinot, J. (2000) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/s0006-3223(00)00629-6 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Brody, A. L., Saxena, S., Stoessel, P., Gillies, L. A., Fairbanks, L. A., Alborzian, S., Phelps, M. E., Huang, S.-C., Wu, H.-M., Ho, M. L., et al. (2001) · Archives of General Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/archpsyc.58.7.631 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Reconsidering anhedonia in depression: Lessons from translational neuroscience
Treadway, M. T., & Zald, D. H. (2011) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2010.06.006 · Cited by 1,579 · see citing works
Affective neuroscience of pleasure: reward in humans and animals
Berridge, K. C., & Kringelbach, M. L. (2008) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-008-1099-6 · Cited by 1,254 · see citing works
Interoception in anxiety and depression
Paulus, M. P., & Stein, M. B. (2010) · Brain Structure and Function · doi:10.1007/s00429-010-0258-9 · Cited by 952 · see citing works
Hamilton, J. P., Etkin, A., Furman, D. J., Lemus, M. G., Johnson, R. F., & Gotlib, I. H. (2012) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2012.11071105 · Cited by 866 · see citing works
The Neural Correlates of Anhedonia in Major Depressive Disorder
Keedwell, P. A., Andrew, C., Williams, S. C. R., Brammer, M. J., & Phillips, M. L. (2005) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2005.05.019 · Cited by 650 · see citing works
Self-citationPrefrontal cortical regulation of brainwide circuit dynamics and reward-related behavior
Ferenczi, E. A., Zalocusky, K. A., Liston, C., Grosenick, L., Warden, M. R., Amatya, D., Katovich, K., Mehta, H., Patenaude, B., Ramakrishnan, C., et al. (2016) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.aac9698 · Cited by 535 · see citing works
Cognitive Mechanisms of Treatment in Depression
Roiser, J. P., Elliott, R., & Sahakian, B. J. (2012) · Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1038/npp.2011.183 · Cited by 535 · see citing works
Neural Responses to Monetary Incentives in Major Depression
Knutson, B., Bhanji, J. P., Cooney, R. E., Atlas, L. Y., & Gotlib, I. H. (2008) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2007.07.023 · Cited by 496 · see citing works
Lack of Ventral Striatal Response to Positive Stimuli in Depressed Versus Normal Subjects
Epstein, J., Pan, H., Kocsis, J. H., Yang, Y., Butler, T., Chusid, J., Hochberg, H., Murrough, J., Strohmayer, E., Stern, E., et al. (2006) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.2006.163.10.1784 · Cited by 464 · see citing works
Heller, A. S., Johnstone, T., Shackman, A. J., Light, S. N., Peterson, M. J., Kolden, G. G., Kalin, N. H., & Davidson, R. J. (2009) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.0910651106 · Cited by 444 · see citing works
Groenewold, N. A., Opmeer, E. M., de Jonge, P., Aleman, A., & Costafreda, S. G. (2013) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.11.015 · Cited by 417 · see citing works
Wacker, J., Dillon, D. G., & Pizzagalli, D. A. (2009) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2009.01.058 · Cited by 405 · see citing works
Franken, I. H. A., Rassin, E., & Muris, P. (2007) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2006.08.020 · Cited by 373 · see citing works
Zhang, W.-N., Chang, S.-H., Guo, L.-Y., Zhang, K.-L., & Wang, J. (2013) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2013.06.039 · Cited by 355 · see citing works
Affective Cognition and its Disruption in Mood Disorders
Elliott, R., Zahn, R., Deakin, J. F. W., & Anderson, I. M. (2011) · Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1038/npp.2010.77 · Cited by 330 · see citing works
Neurotrophic factors and neuroplasticity pathways in the pathophysiology and treatment of depression
Levy, M. J. F., Boulle, F., Steinbusch, H. W., van den Hove, D. L. A., Kenis, G., & Lanfumey, L. (2018) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-018-4950-4 · Cited by 308 · see citing works
Dichter, G. S., Damiano, C. A., & Allen, J. A. (2012) · Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders · doi:10.1186/1866-1955-4-19 · Cited by 299 · see citing works
Harshaw, C. (2015) · Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.1037/a0038101 · Cited by 302 · see citing works
Neurobiological mechanisms of anhedonia
Gorwood, P. (2008) · Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience · doi:10.31887/dcns.2008.10.3/pgorwood · Cited by 285 · see citing works
Hamilton, J. P., Chen, M. C., & Gotlib, I. H. (2013) · Neurobiology of Disease · doi:10.1016/j.nbd.2012.01.015 · Cited by 293 · see citing works
The effects of psychotherapy on neural responses to rewards in major depression
Dichter, G. S., Felder, J. N., Petty, C., Bizzell, J., Ernst, M., & Smoski, M. J. (2009) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2009.06.021 · Cited by 278 · see citing works
Neuropsychological mechanism underlying antidepressant effect: a systematic meta-analysis
Ma, Y. (2015) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/mp.2014.24 · Cited by 270 · see citing works
Harvey, P.-O., Pruessner, J., Czechowska, Y., & Lepage, M. (2007) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/sj.mp.4002021 · Cited by 259 · see citing works
Ng, T. H., Alloy, L. B., & Smith, D. V. (2019) · Translational Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41398-019-0644-x · Cited by 244 · see citing works
Liu, Z., Xu, C., Xu, Y., Wang, Y., Zhao, B., Lv, Y., Cao, X., Zhang, K., & Du, C. (2010) · Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging · doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2010.03.004 · Cited by 235 · see citing works
Chen, C.-H., Lennox, B., Jacob, R., Calder, A., Lupson, V., Bisbrown-Chippendale, R., Suckling, J., & Bullmore, E. (2006) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2005.06.008 · Cited by 235 · see citing works
Building a neuroscience of pleasure and well-being
Berridge, K. C., & Kringelbach, M. L. (2011) · Psychology of Well-Being: Theory, Research and Practice · doi:10.1186/2211-1522-1-3 · Cited by 229 · see citing works
Keedwell, P. A., Andrew, C., Williams, S. C. R., Brammer, M. J., & Phillips, M. L. (2005) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2005.04.035 · Cited by 218 · see citing works
Self-citationPsychopathology and pathophysiology of the self in depression-Neuropsychiatric hypothesis
Northoff, G. (2007) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2007.02.012 · Cited by 209 · see citing works
Borsini, A., Wallis, A. S. J., Zunszain, P., Pariante, C. M., & Kempton, M. J. (2020) · Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3758/s13415-020-00804-6 · Cited by 207 · see citing works
Dichter, G. S., Kozink, R. V., McClernon, F. J., & Smoski, M. J. (2012) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2011.09.048 · Cited by 170 · see citing works
Unipolar depression does not moderate responses to the Sweet Taste Test
Dichter, G. S., Smoski, M. J., Kampov-Polevoy, A. B., Gallop, R., & Garbutt, J. C. (2010) · Depression and Anxiety · doi:10.1002/da.20690 · Cited by 175 · see citing works
Distinct Neural Activity Associated with Focused-Attention Meditation and Loving-Kindness Meditation
Lee, T. M. C., Leung, M.-K., Hou, W.-K., Tang, J. C. Y., Yin, J., So, K.-F., Lee, C.-F., & Chan, C. C. H. (2012) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0040054 · Cited by 162 · see citing works
Schaefer, H. S., Putnam, K. M., Benca, R. M., & Davidson, R. J. (2006) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2006.03.024 · Cited by 158 · see citing works
Mapping anhedonia-specific dysfunction in a transdiagnostic approach: an ALE meta-analysis
Zhang, B., Lin, P., Shi, H., Öngür, D., Auerbach, R. P., Wang, X., Yao, S., & Wang, X. (2016) · Brain Imaging and Behavior · doi:10.1007/s11682-015-9457-6 · Cited by 152 · see citing works
Paulus, M. P., Feinstein, J. S., Leland, D., & Simmons, A. N. (2005) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2004.12.055 · Cited by 141 · see citing works
Self-citationA review of fMRI studies during visual emotive processing in major depressive disorder
Jaworska, N., Yang, X.-R., Knott, V., & MacQueen, G. (2015) · The World Journal of Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.3109/15622975.2014.885659 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
Remijnse, P. L., Nielen, M. M. A., van Balkom, A. J. L. M., Hendriks, G.-J., Hoogendijk, W. J., Uylings, H. B. M., & Veltman, D. J. (2009) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291708005072 · Cited by 127 · see citing works
Alexander, L., Gaskin, P. L. R., Sawiak, S. J., Fryer, T. D., Hong, Y. T., Cockcroft, G. J., Clarke, H. F., & Roberts, A. C. (2019) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2018.11.021 · Cited by 120 · see citing works
A meta-analysis of changes in brain activity in clinical depression
Palmer, S. M., Crewther, S. G., Carey, L. M., & The START Project Team (2015) · Frontiers in Human Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnhum.2014.01045 · Cited by 116 · see citing works
Stuhrmann, A., Dohm, K., Kugel, H., Zwanzger, P., Redlich, R., Grotegerd, D., Rauch, A. V., Arolt, V., Heindel, W., Suslow, T., et al. (2013) · Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience · doi:10.1503/jpn.120060 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Davey, C. G., Allen, N. B., Harrison, B. J., & Yücel, M. (2011) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2010.12.004 · Cited by 98 · see citing works
Smoski, M. J., Rittenberg, A., & Dichter, G. S. (2011) · Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging · doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2011.06.012 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Li, X., & Wang, J. (2021) · Brain Imaging and Behavior · doi:10.1007/s11682-020-00299-2 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
Remitted major depression is characterized by reduced prefrontal cortex reactivity to reward loss
Schiller, C. E., Minkel, J., Smoski, M. J., & Dichter, G. S. (2013) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2013.06.016 · Cited by 89 · see citing works
Katzman, M., & Sternat, T. (2016) · Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment · doi:10.2147/ndt.s111818 · Cited by 83 · see citing works
Almeida, J. R. C. D., Kronhaus, D. M., Sibille, E. L., Langenecker, S. A., Versace, A., LaBarbara, E. J., & Phillips, M. L. (2011) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2011.00069 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
McIntyre, R. S., Woldeyohannes, H. O., Soczynska, J. K., Maruschak, N. A., Wium-Andersen, I. K., Vinberg, M., Cha, D. S., Lee, Y., Xiao, H. X., Gallaugher, L. A., et al. (2016) · CNS Spectrums · doi:10.1017/s1092852915000747 · Cited by 56 · see citing works
Neural basis of negativity bias in the perception of ambiguous facial expression
Ito, T., Yokokawa, K., Yahata, N., Isato, A., Suhara, T., & Yamada, M. (2017) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-017-00502-3 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Altered response to risky decisions and reward in patients with obsessive–compulsive disorder
Moreira, P. S., Macoveanu, J., Marques, P., Coelho, A., Magalhães, R., Siebner, H. R., Soares, J. M., Sousa, N., & Morgado, P. (2020) · Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience · doi:10.1503/jpn.180226 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
- Authors
- Mitterschiffthaler, M. T., Kumari, V., Malhi, G. S., Brown, R. G., Giampietro, V. P., Brammer, M. J., Suckling, J., Poon, L., Simmons, A., Andrew, C., & Sharma, T.
- Affiliations
- King's College London (GB)
- ORCID
- Venue
- NeuroReport
- Published
- 2003-02
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 177-182
- ISSN
- 0959-4965 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2081122328
- Cited by
- 162
- References
- 27
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 3.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Neuroreport (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Treatment of Major Depression
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Keywords
- anhedonia, major depressive disorder, emotional processing, medial frontal cortex, inferior frontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, thalamus, putamen, insula, neural correlates
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Analysis of Variance, Brain, Major Depressive Disorder, Emotions, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Middle Aged, Photic Stimulation, Sensory Thresholds
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review