A

Multi-site benchmark classification of major depressive disorder using machine learning on cortical and subcortical measures

Scientific Reports, vol. 14, pp. 1084

Abstract

Machine learning (ML) techniques have gained popularity in the neuroimaging field due to their potential for classifying neuropsychiatric disorders. However, the diagnostic predictive power of the existing algorithms has been limited by small sample sizes, lack of representativeness, data leakage, and/or overfitting. Here, we overcome these limitations with the largest multi-site sample size to date (N = 5365) to provide a generalizable ML classification benchmark of major depressive disorder (MDD) using shallow linear and non-linear models. Leveraging brain measures from standardized ENIGMA analysis pipelines in FreeSurfer, we were able to classify MDD versus healthy controls (HC) with a balanced accuracy of around 62%. But after harmonizing the data, e.g., using ComBat, the balanced accuracy dropped to approximately 52%. Accuracy results close to random chance levels were also observed in stratified groups according to age of onset, antidepressant use, number of episodes and sex. Future studies incorporating higher dimensional brain imaging/phenotype features, and/or using more advanced machine and deep learning methods may yield more encouraging prospects.

Authors 64

  1. Universitätsmedizin Göttingen · University of Göttingen

    Affiliation as printed

    Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience and Imaging in Psychiatry (SNIP-Lab), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen (UMG), Georg-August University, Von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany

  2. Leiden University · Amsterdam Neuroscience · Amsterdam Public Health · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Institute of Education and Child Studies, Section Forensic Family and Youth Care, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands

  3. University Medical Center Groningen · University of Groningen

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands

  4. University of Cape Town

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

  5. University of Minnesota

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

  6. IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele

    Affiliation as printed

    Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy

  7. Jena University Hospital

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany

  8. Universitätsmedizin Greifswald · Universität Greifswald

    Affiliation as printed

    Institute for Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

  9. University of Southern California

    Affiliation as printed

    Imaging Genetics Center, Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, USA

  10. Florida State University

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Biomedical Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA

  11. University of Minnesota

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

  12. The University of Melbourne

    Affiliation as printed

    Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

  13. City, University of London · King's College London

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK

    Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Social Sciences, City, University of London, London, UK

  14. Amsterdam Neuroscience · Amsterdam Public Health · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  15. National Institutes of Health · National Institute of Mental Health

    Affiliation as printed

    Experimental Therapeutics and Pathophysiology Branch, National Institute for Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

  16. University of East London · King's College London

    Affiliation as printed

    Centre for Affective Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK

    School of Psychology, University of East London, London, UK

  17. Ege University

    Affiliation as printed

    SoCAT Lab, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Ege University, Izmir, Turkey

  18. Stanford University

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

  19. Universitätsmedizin Greifswald · Universität Greifswald

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

  20. University of Cape Town

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

  21. Linköping University

    Affiliation as printed

    Center for Medical Imaging and Visualization, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

    Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden

  22. The University of Melbourne

    Affiliation as printed

    Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

  23. University of California, Los Angeles · University of California, San Francisco

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

  24. The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

    Affiliation as printed

    Center Of Excellence On Mood Disorders, Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA

    Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA

  25. McGill University

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

  26. University of Southern California

    Affiliation as printed

    Imaging Genetics Center, Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, USA

  27. University of Minnesota

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

  28. University of Cape Town

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

  29. Cardiff University

    Affiliation as printed

    Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Center, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    MRC Center for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

  30. Jena University Hospital

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany

  31. Maastricht University · Cardiff University

    Affiliation as printed

    Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Center, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Division of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    MRC Center for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    School of Mental Health and Neuroscience, Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands

  32. University of Calgary

    Affiliation as printed

    Departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

  33. Cardiff University · RWTH Aachen University

    Affiliation as printed

    Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Center, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

    Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical School, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany

    MRC Center for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK

  34. IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele

    Affiliation as printed

    Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy

  35. University of Minnesota

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA

  36. University of Pittsburgh · Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition

    Affiliation as printed

    Center for Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

  37. Amsterdam Neuroscience · Amsterdam Public Health · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  38. Amsterdam Neuroscience · Amsterdam Public Health · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  39. IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele

    Affiliation as printed

    Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy

  40. Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental · Fidmag Sisters Hospitallers

    Affiliation as printed

    FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries Research Foundation, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

  41. Hospital de Sant Pau · Institut de Recerca Sant Pau

    Affiliation as printed

    Sant Pau Mental Health Research Group, Institut de Recerca de L'Hospital de La Santa Creu I Sant Pau, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

  42. The University of Melbourne · Orygen

    Affiliation as printed

    Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

    Orygen, Parkville, VIC, Australia

  43. Amsterdam University Medical Centers

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  44. Harvard University · Massachusetts General Hospital

    Affiliation as printed

    Meditation Research Program, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

  45. Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry

    Affiliation as printed

    Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany

  46. Amsterdam University Medical Centers

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  47. National University of Singapore · Nanyang Technological University · Institute of Mental Health

    Affiliation as printed

    Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    West Region, Institute of Mental Health, Singapore, Singapore

    Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

  48. The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

    Affiliation as printed

    Center Of Excellence On Mood Disorders, Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA

  49. University of Cape Town

    Affiliation as printed

    SA MRC Research Unit on Risk and Resilience in Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

  50. University of Southern California

    Affiliation as printed

    Imaging Genetics Center, Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, USA

  51. Ege University

    Affiliation as printed

    SoCAT Lab, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Ege University, Izmir, Turkey

  52. Leiden University Medical Center

    Affiliation as printed

    Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands

  53. Leiden University Medical Center

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands

    Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands

  54. Universitätsmedizin Greifswald · Universität Greifswald

    Affiliation as printed

    Institute for Community Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

  55. The University of Melbourne · Melbourne Health

    Affiliation as printed

    Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

  56. Universitätsmedizin Greifswald · German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases · Universität Greifswald

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

    German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Site Rostock/ Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany

  57. The University of Queensland

    Affiliation as printed

    Centre for Advanced Imaging, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

  58. The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston

    Affiliation as printed

    Center Of Excellence On Mood Disorders, Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA

    Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, USA

  59. University of California, San Francisco

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

  60. National Institutes of Health · National Institute of Mental Health

    Affiliation as printed

    Section on the Neurobiology and Treatment of Mood Disorders, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA

  61. Amsterdam Neuroscience · Amsterdam Public Health · Amsterdam University Medical Centers · Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

    Affiliation as printed

    Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

  62. The University of Melbourne · Orygen

    Affiliation as printed

    Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia

    Orygen, Parkville, VIC, Australia

  63. University of Southern California

    Affiliation as printed

    Imaging Genetics Center, Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, USA

  64. Roberto Goya‐Maldonado corresponding

    Universitätsmedizin Göttingen · University of Göttingen

    Affiliation as printed

    Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience and Imaging in Psychiatry (SNIP-Lab), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen (UMG), Georg-August University, Von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany. roberto.goya@med.uni-goettingen.de

    Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience and Imaging in Psychiatry (SNIP-Lab), Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen (UMG), Georg-August University, Von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany

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References 84