The Impact of Childhood Maltreatment Experiences on the Structural Covariance Network of Amygdala Subregions in Adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder

Background Childhood maltreatment (CM) and the amygdala are pivotal in the etiology of adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD), but the neurobiological processes linking them remain ambiguous. Methods This study employed voxel-based morphometry to quantify gray matter volume and examined the structural covariance networks (SCN) of amygdala subregions in 92 adolescents with MDD and 81 healthy controls (HCs), concurrently administering the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form (CTQ-SF) to evaluate experiences of CM. Results The results demonstrated that, in contrast to healthy controls, adolescents with major depressive disorder displayed heightened developmental synchrony between the amygdala subregions and the parietal cortex. Moreover, CM was identified as a potential modifier of the top-down regulation of the frontal cortex over the limbic system, influencing the synchronous maturation of neural circuits associated with tactile information in the amygdala, thereby heightening the risk of developing MDD. Conclusions This research demonstrates the influence of CM on brain development and mental health, highlighting the need for specific therapies for adolescents with a history of CM. Trial registration Prospective Registration, Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (http://www.chictr.org.cn|| ChiCTR2100042346|| Registration Date: 2021/01/19).