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Cited by 62Suicide and Self-Harm StudiesTreatment of Major DepressionAdvanced MRI Techniques and Applications

Spectroscopy markers of suicidal risk and mental pain in depressed patients

Jollant, Fabrice, Near, Jamie, Turecki, Gustavo, Richard-Devantoy, Stéphane·2017·Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry
DOI 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2016.10.005
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Abstract

Objective Suicidal behavior has been associated with structural and functional impairments in neuroimaging studies, mainly localized in the prefrontal cortex. However, little is known of the in vivo biochemical alterations that could be markers of suicidal risk.Methods Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy was used to measure at-rest levels of 9 metabolites (glutamate, glutamine, glutathione, GABA, N-acetylaspartate (NAA), N-acetylaspartylglutamate, myo-inositol, aspartate, total choline), in the right dorsal prefrontal cortex of 25 unmedicated depressed patients, including 15 with a history of suicidal behavior, and 33 healthy controls. We compared metabolite levels between groups, and run correlations with 9 clinical variables relevant for suicide risk.Results We found very significant associations between NAA levels and psychological pain measured by a simple analog scale (r=-0.47, p<10-3), and between choline levels and current suicidal ideas (r=0.53, p<10-3). These associations were independent from group, gender, age or depression level. While psychological pain and suicidal ideas were highly inter-correlated (r=0.61, p<10-3), the above-mentioned associations with compounds were independent. Mental pain was also correlated with Stroop interference, verbal fluency and (indirectly) decision-making, all cognitive measures previously associated with suicidal risk. Lower NAA levels, and higher glutamine levels were found in suicide attempters and in all patients relative to healthy controls, but these differences did not survive co-variation with age or Bonferroni's correction.Conclusion This preliminary study suggests that markers of impaired neuronal and glial functioning in right dorsal prefrontal cortex underlie cardinal symptoms of the suicidal crisis. Targeting this region may be relevant for the short-term suicidal prevention. This study also supports a dimensional perspective in research on suicidal behavior.

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  • Psychological pain is significantly correlated with inhibitory control, verbal fluency, and decision-making.

    “Jollant et al. [27] found that psychological pain was significantly correlated with inhibitory control, as well as with other cognitive measures such as verbal fluency and decision-making”

    From Targeting Psychological Pain After a Suicide Attempt: Scoping Review and Intervention Protocol (2026) · cites this paper as [27]

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Authors
Jollant, F., Near, J., Turecki, G., & Richard-Devantoy, S.
Affiliations
Douglas Mental Health University Institute (CA)
Corresponding author
Jollant, Fabrice
ORCID
Venue
Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2017-02
Volume
73
Pages
64-71
ISSN
0278-5846 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.pnpbp.2016.10.005
OpenAlex
W2545714304
Cited by
61
References
59
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 27 · 2017: 3
FWCI
15.20
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
Canadian Institutes for Health Research (119288)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Treatment of Major Depression
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
Keywords
suicide risk, depression, 1H NMR, N-acetylaspartate, choline, glutamine, dorsal prefrontal cortex, psychological suffering, suicidal ideation, suicide attempters, suicide prevention, neurochemical markers

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