Citation

Sudol K, Mann JJ. Curr. Psychiatry Rep. 2017; 19(6): e31.

Affiliation

Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology Division, New York State Psychiatric Institute, 1051 Riverside Drive, Box 42, New York, NY, 10032, USA. jjm@columbia.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s11920-017-0781-y

PMID

28470485

Abstract

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The rising suicide rate in the USA will not be reversed without improved risk assessment and prevention practices. To date, the best method for clinicians to assess a patient's risk for suicide is screening for past suicide attempts in the patient and their family. However, neuroimaging, genomic, and biochemical studies have generated a body of findings that allow description of an initial heuristic biological model for suicidal behavior that may have predictive value. RECENT FINDINGS: We review studies from the past 3 years examining potential biological predictors of suicide attempt behavior. We divide findings into two major categories: (1) structural and functional brain imaging findings and (2) biochemical and genomic findings encompassing several systems, including major neurotransmitters (serotonin, catecholamines, GABA, and glutamate), the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis, the inflammasome, lipids, and neuroplasticity. The biomarkers that appear promising for assessing suicide risk in clinical settings include indices of serotonergic function, inflammation, neuronal plasticity, and lipids.

Language: en

Keywords

Biomarkers; Brain imaging; Genetics; Suicidal behavior; Suicide attempt; Suicide risk