Suicidal Behavior Predictors Can Be Found in Blood

People with suicidal thoughts may find help if doctors can test them for molecular signs, biomarkers and heightened risks, according to a study published Wednesday.

Alexander Niculescu, psychiatrist at Indiana University told Nature that doing these steps can be a preventive strategy.

According to the researchers, it is best to focus on molecular signs or biomarkers instead of searching for predictors of suicide risk as the brain is complex and inaccessible.

The biomarkers on the other hand can indicate which people are at an even higher risk for suicide, Niculescu told Nature.

The results of their study found six biomarkers in the blood that they claim can help identify people at risk for suicidal behavior. Niculescu and his colleagues had their study published in the Molecular Psychiatry.

The research had four distinct phases. First stage was the identification of nine men with bipolar disorder. The research then looked for changes in gene expression in the men's blood cells and identified possible biomarkers. The biomarkers were tested against previous work on genes related to mental illness and suicide.

"This suggests that these markers reflect more than just a current state of high risk, but could be trait markers that correlate with long term risk," said Dr. Niculescu. "There could be gender differences; we would also like to conduct more extensive, normative studies, in the population at large."

The study reports that each year worldwide nearly a million people die from suicide.