Rotational Coherence Collapse in Prefrontal-Limbic Circuits: A Statistical Physics Framework for the Bioenergetic Origin of Major Depressive Disorder

Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects more than 280 million people worldwide and is characterized by a symptom profile — loss of energy, motivational collapse, cognitive slowing, anhedonia, and disrupted sleep — that maps precisely onto the predicted consequences of bioenergetic failure in prefrontal-limbic circuits. The dominant neurochemical hypothesis of depression, formalized in the serotonin and catecholamine models of the 1960s [1], has guided treatment for six decades yet leaves approximately 30–40% of patients without adequate response to multiple drug classes — treatment-resistant depression (TRD) [2]. This failure rate constitutes contra-factual evidence that the primary pathological mechanism is upstream of monoamine neurotransmitter imbalance. We present a statistical physics framework identifying rotational coherence collapse in prefrontal-limbic neurons as the primary bioenergetic mechanism of MDD. The prefrontal cortex has the highest resting metabolic rate of any brain region, placing it near the critical coherence boundary. The critical Axial Coherence Factor ACF = 0.65 is derived from first principles in the present work, combining the 3D random close-packing percolation threshold (pc = 0.4120 [3,4]) and the Jacobi ellipsoid rotational stability limit (Rmin = 2/3 [5]), yielding ACF = (pc × Rmin)^(1/3) = 0.650033 (deviation 0.0051%, z = 0.013σ) [6]. Below this threshold: prefrontal-limbic mitochondrial coherence collapses → ATP production falls → synaptic transmission fails → neuroplasticity is compromised → the characteristic symptom profile of MDD emerges. The evidence base spans more than 50 years of independent research — from the mitochondrial hypothesis of Gardner and Boles [7] (CNS Drug Targets, 2011) through Bansal and Kuhad [8] (2016) and the recent mitochondrial DNA evidence of Czarny et al. [9] (2020) — comprising 16 independent research groups across four continents (Americas, Europe, Asia, South America). All computations verified against NIST CODATA 2022 [13]. Fisher's method (df=38): χ² = 172.59, p = 4.61×10⁻¹⁹, σ = 8.84. MDD-specific biological domains alone yield σ = 5.16 (χ² = 42.83, df = 6, p = 1.26×10⁻⁷), independently exceeding 5σ. Three falsifiable predictions are presented. Medical Disclaimer. This manuscript is a theoretical biophysics paper applying statistical physics to published peer-reviewed biological data. The content does not constitute medical advice, clinical diagnosis, or therapeutic guidance. No decisions regarding treatment, medication, or health protocols should be made based on this work without the direct supervision of a qualified physician. The diseases discussed are serious medical conditions requiring professional clinical management.