Depression is a major risk factor for suicide; approximately 60% of people who attempt suicide have a history of depression. Importantly, emerging evidence suggests there may be specific ages or sensitive periods when life experiences, such as depression, have greater impacts on future mental health. As depression rates increased fourfold during the pandemic, it is crucial to identify when and how depression influences suicide risk.
Suicide clearly arises through both life experiences and genetic mechanisms. Yet, it remains unclear how these factors interact and become biologically embedded to influence suicidal behaviours.
Dr Lussier and his team aim to determine the extent to which the timing of child and adolescent depression interacts with genetic susceptibility to influence suicide risk in early adulthood. He also plans to assess the role of DNA methylation and how it might link depression to future suicide risk.
DNA methylation (DNAm) is a specific type of gene modification, or epigenetic change, that can reflect a person’s environment or life experiences. In other words, life experience might leave lasting biological memories on a person’s DNA through DNAm, which could explain their future risk for disease. DNAm has emerged as a prime candidate to explain the biological underpinnings of suicide. Moreover, people who attempt or complete suicide display DNAm alterations, suggesting these could be leveraged as biomarkers to identify people at higher risk for premature death.
Dr Lussier will analyze longitudinal data already collected from British Parents and Children including genetic data, and records about their depressive symptoms.
This data will come from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) which has collected data on suicidal ideation, self-harm and suicide attempts for participants aged 4-27.
The team will also use data from the US based Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) which followed a group of children for 22 years and recorded their suicidal behaviors and ideation using structured clinical interviews.
This interdisciplinary study will identify the specific ages and patterns of depression during childhood and adolescence that increase future suicide risk. It will also identify the genetic and epigenetic profiles that predict suicidal behaviours and link depression to suicide risk.
These findings will highlight the times during childhood and adolescence when interventions to reduce the risk of suicide might be more effective.
Alex is an Instructor in Psychiatry at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, where he studies the social and biological determinants of mental health across development. Alex received a BSc in Biochemistry from McGill University and a PhD in Medical Genetics from the University of British Columbia. He completed his postdoctoral fellowships in the Department of Computational Biology at Cornell University and the Department of Psychiatry at the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Alex’s research group uses translational approaches to identify socio-biological factors and molecular targets that can help prevent and treat psychopathology across the life course. His research primarily focuses on the role of sensitive periods and epigenetic mechanisms in linking early-life events and environments to mental illness across the life course.
Alex’s research is being supported by the MQ Foundation.
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