Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42699697›Full record

ReviewNeuropsychiatric disease and treatment2026

Heart-Brain Axis Dysregulation in Depression: Mechanisms and Implications for Neuromodulation.

Yilin Xiong, Ziyu Zhu, Caijie Shen, Wei Deng, Yuqi Cheng

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Yilin Xiong *Affiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0009-0003-6869-6817
Ziyu Zhu *Affiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0003-0227-0269
Caijie ShenDepartment of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0002-6971-0313
Wei DengAffiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0001-5937-9877
Yuqi ChengAffiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0000-0003-4574-7063

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is increasingly recognized as a systemic disorder involving dysregulation of the heart-brain axis (HBA). Mounting evidence links impaired HBA signaling to the pathogenesis of major depressive disorder. Emerging data indicate that neuromodulation-mediated autonomic alterations correlate with depressive symptom remission. Although neuromodulatory therapies are widely deployed clinically, HBA-based biomarkers remain experimental, and no consistent physiological predictors of treatment response have been established to date. This review summarizes HBA dysfunction in depression across neural, biochemical, and mechanical pathways, integrating evidence from preclinical and clinical studies. We critically evaluate recent advances in leveraging these pathways to optimize neuromodulation strategies. Emerging evidence suggests that certain neuromodulation approaches-including transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (TES), vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), and deep brain stimulation (DBS)-may modulate heart-brain axis function. It has been hypothesized that such modulation could represent a physiological pathway contributing to mood improvement, providing a rationale for a heart-oriented framework in neuromodulation research. However, the clinical utility of this framework and its underlying biomarkers remain to be established through rigorous long-term investigations. By bridging the conventional conceptual divide between psychiatric and cardiovascular diseases, this review offers a systems-level perspective on neuromodulation efficacy and highlights the potential of HBA-related biomarkers for assessing pathological states and guiding treatment strategies in depression and other psychosomatic conditions.

Indexed as

autonomic nervous systemdepressionheart-brain axisheart-brain couplingheart rate variabilityneuromodulation

Identifiers

PMID42699697
PMCPMC13544135

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.