Clinical Research Directory

Causal Role of Rostromedial Prefrontal Cortex for Positive Savoring in Depression

This is a non-invasive brain stimulation and neuroimaging study that will examine how activity in the medial prefrontal cortex influences reward processing, particularly positive savoring, in individuals with depression. The central question is whether modulating medial prefrontal brain regions using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) alters neural and behavioral responses to rewards. Brain activity will be recorded using both electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participants perform reward tasks. The primary objectives are to (1) identify patterns of brain activity linked to impaired reward processing in depression using EEG and fMRI, and (2) determine the causal role of specific prefrontal areas in these processes through targeted TMS. The methods include four sessions over four weeks: a clinical assessment, EEG recording during reward tasks after participants learn/practice positive savoring, an fMRI session, and a TMS session combined with EEG while participants practice positive savoring and perform reward tasks during EEG.