Citation

Ernst C, Mechawar N, Turecki G. Prog. Neurobiol. 2009; 89(4): 315-333.

Affiliation

McGill Group for Suicide Studies, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.pneurobio.2009.09.001

PMID

19766697

Abstract

In this review, we examine the history of the neurobiology of suicide, the genetics of suicide, and neurochemical findings in suicide. Our analysis in the genetics section will focus on family, twin, and adoption studies that provide a rationale for investigating the neurobiology of suicide. This will lead to an overview of neurochemical findings which will be restricted to neurotransmitters and their receptors, including recent findings in whole genome gene expression studies. Next, we look at recent studies investigating lipid metabolism, cell signalling with a particular emphasis on growth factors, stress systems with a focus on the role of polyamines in suicide, and finally, glial cell pathology in suicide. We conclude with a description of new ideas to study the neurobiology of suicide including subject-specific analysis, protein modification assessment, neuroarchitecture studies, and study design strategies to investigate the complex suicide phenotype.

Language: en