Prospective Investigation of Glutamate Levels and Percentage Gray Matter in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex in Females at Risk for Postpartum Depression

• Published in: Current neuropharmacology 2022-01, Vol.20 (10), p.1988-2000
• Main Authors: Ghuman, Arjun, McEwen, Alyssa, Tran, Kim Hoang, Mitchell, Nicholas, Hanstock, Chris, Seres, Peter, Jhangri, Gian, Burgess, Denee, Baker, Glen, Le Melledo, Jean-Michel
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Depression, Postpartum - metabolism; Depressive Disorder, Major - metabolism; Female; Glutamic Acid - metabolism; Gray Matter - diagnostic imaging; Gray Matter - metabolism; Hormones - metabolism; Humans; Neurology; Prefrontal Cortex - diagnostic imaging; Prefrontal Cortex - metabolism; Pregnancy; Prospective Studies
• ISSN: 1570-159X; 1875-6190
• DOI: 10.2174/1570159X20666220302101115

Background: The substantial female hormone fluctuations associated with pregnancy and postpartum have been linked to a greater risk of developing depressive symptoms, particularly in high-risk women (HRW), i.e. those with histories of mood sensitivity to female hormone fluctuations. We have shown that glutamate (Glu) levels in the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) decrease during perimenopause, a period of increased risk of developing a major depressive episode. Our team has also demonstrated that percentage gray matter (%GM), another neural correlate of maternal brain health, decreases in the MPFC during pregnancy. Objective: To investigate MPFC Glu levels and %GM from late pregnancy up to 7 weeks postpartum in HRW and healthy pregnant women (HPW). Methods: Single-voxel spectra were acquired from the MPFC of 41 HPW and 22 HRW using 3- Tesla in vivo proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at five different time points. Results: We observed a statistically significant interaction between time and group for the metabolite Glu, with Glu levels being lower for HRW during pregnancy and early postpartum (p