This study identifies genetic loci associated with suicide attempts and shows shared genetic architecture with psychiatric disorders and non-psychiatric risk factors.

Biological Psychiatry · Sep 8, 2021Peer-reviewedGenetic & Genomic Medicine

A phenome-wide association and Mendelian Randomisation study of polygenic risk for depression in UK Biobank

Xueyi Shen, David M. Howard, Mark J. Adams, William David Hill, Toni-Kim Clarke, Andrew Mark McIntosh, Ian J. Deary, Naomi R. Wray, Stephan Ripke, Manuel Mattheisen, Maciej Trzaskowski, Enda M. Byrne, Abdel Abdellaoui, Esben Agerbo, Tracy Air, , Michael John Owen

This study identifies traits associated with polygenic risk for depression using UK Biobank data and finds causal links between depression risk and brain structure, as well as environmental interactions.

Nature Communications · May 8, 2020Peer-reviewedGenetics

Genetic variation in the Major Histocompatibility Complex and association with depression

Kylie P. Glanville, Jonathan R. I. Coleman, Ken Benjamin Hanscombe, Jack Euesden, Shing Wan Choi, Kirstin Lee Purves, Gerome D. Breen, Tracy Air, Till F. M. Andlauer, Bernhard Theodor Baune, Elisabeth B. Binder, Douglas Blackwood, Dorret Irene Boomsma, Henriette N. Buttenschøn, Lucía Colodro‐Conde, , Thomas Folkmann Hansen

This study investigates whether genetic variation in the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) is associated with depression risk, finding no significant associations at a conservative threshold.

Biological Psychiatry · Aug 5, 2019Peer-reviewedGenetics

Variably methylated regions in the newborn epigenome: environmental, genetic and combined influences

Darina Czamara, Gökçen Eraslan, Christian Magnus Page, Jari M. T. Lahti, Marius Lahti‐Pulkkinen, Esa K Hämäläinen, Eero Kajantie, Hannele M. Laivuori, Pia Villa, Rebecca M. Reynolds, Wenche Nystad, Siri E. Håberg, Stephanie J. London, Kieran J. O’Donnell, Elika Garg, , Robert M. Maier

The paper examines how genetic and environmental factors influence DNA methylation at variably methylated regions in neonatal blood, finding that combined effects best explain methylation variability.

Nature Communications · Jun 11, 2019Peer-reviewedGenetics

Genetic comorbidity between major depression and cardio-metabolic disease, stratified by age at onset of major depression.

Saskia P. Hagenaars, JRI Coleman, Shing Wan Choi, Héléna A. Gaspar, Mark J. Adams, David M. Howard, Karen Hodgson, Matthew Traylor, Tracy Air, Till F. M. Andlauer, Volker Arolt, B. Baune, E Binder, DHR Blackwood, Dorret Irene Boomsma, , Cathryn M. Lewis

This study investigates genetic associations between major depression and cardio-metabolic traits, finding shared genetic aetiology regardless of depression onset age.

bioRxiv · May 24, 2019 · PreprintGenetics

Applying polygenic risk scoring for psychiatric disorders to a large family with Bipolar Disorder and Major Depressive Disorder

Simone de Jong, Mateus Jose Abdalla Diniz, Andiara Saloma, Ary Gadelha, Marcos Leite Santoro, Vanessa Ota, Cristiano de Souza Noto, Naomi R. Wray, Stephan Ripke, Manuel Mattheisen, Maciej Trzaskowski, Enda M. Byrne, Abdel Abdellaoui, Mark J. Adams, Esben Agerbo, , Jodie N. Painter

The paper applies polygenic risk scoring to a large family with bipolar and depressive disorders to study genetic risk patterns and anticipation.

Communications Biology · Oct 2, 2018Peer-reviewedGenetics

Genome-wide association analyses identify 44 risk variants and refine the genetic architecture of major depression

eQTLGen, Naomi R. Wray, 23andMe, Stephan Ripke, Manuel Mattheisen, Maciej Trzaskowski, Enda M. Byrne, Abdel Abdellaoui, Mark J. Adams, Esben Agerbo, Tracy Air, Till F. M. Andlauer, Silviu‐Alin Bacanu, Marie Bækvad‐Hansen, Aartjan T.F. Beekman, , Niamh Mullins

Genome-wide association meta-analysis of 130,664 major depression cases and 330,470 controls identifies 44 independent risk loci enriched in cortical neurons, conserved mammalian regions, splicing networks, and antidepressant targets.

Nature Genetics · Apr 26, 2018Peer-reviewedGenetics✦ In-depth digest