The moderating effect of heart rate variability on the relationship between alpha asymmetry and depressive symptoms

Electroencephalographic (EEG) research has suggested relatively reduced brain activity in the left frontal and right posterior region trait-markers of depression. However, inconsistent results have been reported. Based on previous studies reporting the heart rate variability (HRV) as an index of emotional regulation, this study makes a novel investigation of the role of heart rate variability (HRV) as a moderator in the relationship between frontal and parietal alpha asymmetry and depression. Resting EEG (eyes open) was recorded in 38 patients with MDD and 34 healthy subjects. Frontal and parietal alpha asymmetries were calculated at total (8–12 Hz), high (10–12 Hz), and low (8–10 Hz) alpha frequency bands. Three vagally mediated HRV (vmHRV) components (LF, HF, and the LF/HF ratio) were calculated in the frequency domain. Relatively greater right parietal alpha activity significantly predicted the severity of depression only when HF was low (or the LF/HF ratio was high) at low alpha frequency band. The interaction effect of parietal alpha asymmetry and vmHRV remained significant after including anxiety score as a covariate. No moderation effect of vmHRV was found for frontal sites and other frequency bands, as well as healthy subjects. These findings suggest that vmHRV moderates the association between parietal alpha asymmetry at low frequency band and depression for MDD patients. We suggest that the interaction between parietal alpha asymmetry and vmHRV may be a biomarker of MDD.