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Sun S, Liu Q, Wang Z, Huang YY, Sublette ME, Dwork AJ, Rosoklija G, Ge Y, Galfalvy H, Mann JJ, Haghighi F. Brain and blood transcriptome profiles delineate common genetic pathways across suicidal ideation and suicide. Mol Psychiatry 2024; 29:1417-1426. [PMID: 38278992 PMCID: PMC11189724 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02420-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
Human genetic studies indicate that suicidal ideation and behavior are both heritable. Most studies have examined associations between aberrant gene expression and suicide behavior, but behavior risk is linked to the severity of suicidal ideation. Through a gene network approach, this study investigates how gene co-expression patterns are associated with suicidal ideation and severity using RNA-seq data in peripheral blood from 46 live participants with elevated suicidal ideation and 46 with no ideation. Associations with the presence of suicidal ideation were found within 18 co-expressed modules (p < 0.05), as well as in 3 co-expressed modules associated with suicidal ideation severity (p < 0.05, not explained by severity of depression). Suicidal ideation presence and severity-related gene modules with enrichment of genes involved in defense against microbial infection, inflammation, and adaptive immune response were identified and investigated using RNA-seq data from postmortem brain that revealed gene expression differences with moderate effect sizes in suicide decedents vs. non-suicides in white matter, but not gray matter. Findings support a role of brain and peripheral blood inflammation in suicide risk, showing that suicidal ideation presence and severity are associated with an inflammatory signature detectable in blood and brain, indicating a biological continuity between ideation and suicidal behavior that may underlie a common heritability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shengnan Sun
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA
| | - Qingkun Liu
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA
| | - Zhaoyu Wang
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
- James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA
| | - Yung-Yu Huang
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Division of Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - M Elizabeth Sublette
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Division of Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Andrew J Dwork
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Division of Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Gorazd Rosoklija
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Division of Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Yongchao Ge
- Department of Neurology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Hanga Galfalvy
- James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - J John Mann
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10032, USA
- Division of Molecular Imaging and Neuropathology, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, 10032, USA
| | - Fatemeh Haghighi
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
- James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 10468, USA.
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