Medikamente können die Motivation von Menschen mit Depressionen steigern

> Motivational impairments are a core component of depression and have long been linked with poor treatment outcomes, diminished quality of life, and heightened suicide risk.

> Growing evidence suggests one potential cause of low motivation may be persistent inflammation, which suppresses activity within key circuits in the brain.

> The new study is the first of its kind to examine the effects of infliximab—an antagonist of inflammatory molecule tumor necrosis factor (TNF)—on both behavioral and brain markers of motivation in a group of 42 medically stable, unmedicated depressed patients.

> Importantly, the study focused on patients who were not only depressed, but also exhibited evidence of high inflammation as measured by C-reactive protein (CRP) greater than 3 mg/L. CRP is a blood test commonly available in clinics and hospitals throughout the United States. The research team believed that for some patients with depression, the addition of high inflammation might play a key role in their experience of lower motivation.

> Patients who received infliximab demonstrated a greater willingness to exert effort in pursuit of rewards compared to those who received the placebo. This increase in effortful behavior was closely tied to a reduction in signaling pathways directly targeted by infliximab, particularly TNF.

> Furthermore, these changes were reflected by alterations in brain activity within key regions associated with motivation, such as the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, ventral striatum, and putamen, as well as the functional connectivity between these areas.

> “This is the first study to reveal the impact of an anti-inflammatory drug on brain circuits related to motivation,” says first author Michael Treadway, a professor of psychology at Emory University.