News

Identification of blood-based biomarkers may predict risk to help save lives

September 15, 2024

The School of Medicine has received a three-year, $1.5 million Focus Grant from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to explore innovative approaches to identifying blood-based biomarkers that may predict suicide risk. “Utilizing cutting-edge machine learning techniques, the project will combine blood molecular data with clinical information from two key groups: individuals who have died by suicide and major depressive disorder patients who are being monitored for suicidal behavior,” said principal investigator Adolfo Sequeira, UC Irvine associate researcher in the Department of Psychiatry & Human Behavior. The development of more accurate and effective tools for identifying specific molecular changes, such as gene activity and DNA chemical alteration that can serve as reliable indicators, could pave the way for more targeted and personalized treatment strategies.

January 25, 2024

In an exploratory and preliminary clinical test, a team of researchers at Stanford University has obtained “initial evidence” suggesting that a psychoactive compound called ibogaine, when co-administered with magnesium, “could be a powerful therapeutic” to safely treat a variety of psychiatric symptoms, including PTSD, major depression and anxiety, and suicidality, all of which may emerge following traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Ibogaine, derived from the root bark of a shrub, has been used for traditional religious and healing purposes in Africa for centuries. Sometimes called an atypical psychedelic, the Stanford researchers prefer to classify it as an “oneirogen,” based on a Greek word that describes its main psychotropic effect: therapeutic dosing leads to dreamlike states of consciousness that persist for several hours and sometimes even longer. Proponents of the compound say it facilitates self-reflection and self-evaluation. These are qualities that in recent years have been attributed to psychedelic compounds such as MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD. Like those agents, ibogaine since 1970 has been listed by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as a Schedule I compound, with no officially recognized medical use and with a “high potential for misuse.”

Read the full article at The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation »

But other factors appear to predict psychological resilience in study of first-year college students, adding to options for identifying anyone who might need more support under stress

December 16, 2023

Living through a historic pandemic while handling the stress of the first year of college sent one-third of students in a new study into clinical depression. That’s double the percentage seen in previous years of the same study.

And while certain genetic factors appeared to shield first-year students in pre-pandemic years from depression, even students with these protective factors found themselves developing symptoms in the pandemic years.

In fact, much of the overall rise in student depression during the pandemic was among young women with this kind of “genetic resilience.”

But the research has a silver lining.

By studying these students’ experiences and backgrounds in depth and over time, scientists may have discovered a way to go beyond genetics to predict which students might be more or less vulnerable to stress-related depression.

Read the full article at Michigan Neuroscience Institute »