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Effects of erythropoietin on memory‐relevant neurocircuitry activity and recall in mood disorders
Author(s) -
Miskowiak K. W.,
Macoveanu J.,
Vinberg M.,
Assentoft E.,
Randers L.,
Harmer C. J.,
Ehrenreich H.,
Paulson O. B.,
Knudsen G. M.,
Siebner H. R.,
Kessing L. V.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/acps.12597
Subject(s) - recall , erythropoietin , mood , hippocampus , functional magnetic resonance imaging , psychology , depression (economics) , hippocampal formation , brain activity and meditation , medicine , mood disorders , cohort , prefrontal cortex , verbal memory , oncology , neuroscience , cognition , psychiatry , anxiety , electroencephalography , economics , cognitive psychology , macroeconomics
Objective Erythropoietin ( EPO ) improves verbal memory and reverses subfield hippocampal volume loss across depression and bipolar disorder ( BD ). This study aimed to investigate with functional magnetic resonance imaging (f MRI ) whether these effects were accompanied by functional changes in memory‐relevant neuro‐circuits in this cohort. Method Eighty‐four patients with treatment‐resistant unipolar depression who were moderately depressed or BD in remission were randomized to eight weekly EPO (40 000 IU ) or saline infusions in a double‐blind, parallel‐group design. Participants underwent whole‐brain f MRI at 3T, mood ratings, and blood tests at baseline and week 14. During f MRI , participants performed a picture encoding task followed by postscan recall. Results Sixty‐two patients had complete data ( EPO : N = 32, saline: N = 30). EPO improved picture recall and increased encoding‐related activity in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dl PFC ) and temporo‐parietal regions, but not in hippocampus. Recall correlated with activity in the identified dl PFC and temporo‐parietal regions at baseline, and change in recall correlated with activity change in these regions from baseline to follow‐up across the entire cohort. The effects of EPO were not correlated with change in mood, red blood cells, blood pressure, or medication. Conclusion The findings highlight enhanced encoding‐related dl PFC and temporo‐parietal activity as key neuronal underpinnings of EPO ‐associated memory improvement.