The largest-ever study of genetic risk factors for suicide identified 12 gene variations associated with a higher risk of suicide attempts.
The study, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry Oct. 1, used data from more than 40,000 documented suicide attempts and 900,000 ancestry-matched controls from 22 populations worldwide. It is the largest-ever genetic meta-analysis of suicide attempts, according to an Oct. 1 news release from the University of Utah.
The study was led by researchers at the Salt Lake City-based Huntsman Mental Health Institute at the University of Utah, New York City-based Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Durham, N.C.-based Duke University School of Medicine and Durham Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, and Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt University.
Here are five things to know about the study's findings:
- The 12 genetic variants associated with a higher risk of attempting suicide are linked to several other conditions, including chronic pain, attention hyper-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, smoking, pulmonary conditions and heart disease.
- The genetic variants were consistent across both civilian and military population cohorts included in the meta-analysis.
- The 12 gene loci the researchers identified were associated with biological functions, including managing cellular stress, repairing damaged DNA and communicating with the immune system.
- Discovering the biological factors associated with higher suicide risk can help develop more targeted and effective drugs to lower suicide risk in the future, Hillary Coon, PhD, a study co-author and professor of psychiatry at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute, said in the news release.
- A better understanding of the genetic information behind the health risks associated with attempted suicide can help providers better identify patients in need of mental healthcare, Anna Docherty, PhD, the study's corresponding author and associate professor of psychiatry at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute, said.