Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 21, 2026

LDL Cholesterol Uptake Assay Using Live Cell Imaging Analysis with Cell Health Monitoring
Published on: November 17, 2018
Cholesterol metabolism and suicidality in Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome carriers
Aleksandra Lalovic1, Louise Merkens, Laura Russell
1McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Hospital Research Centre, 6875 LaSalle Blvd., Verdun, Quebec H4H 1R3, Canada.
Objective:
The authors examined the relationship between cholesterol metabolism and suicidality in carriers of Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome and their families. This population has a partial deficiency in 7-dehydrocholesterol reductase (DHCR7), the enzyme that catalyzes the last step in cholesterol biosynthesis.
Method:
Suicidal behavior, depression, misuse of alcohol and drugs, and family history of psychopathology, including attempted or completed suicide, were assessed by structured interview in 51 carriers of Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome and 54 matched comparison subjects.
Results:
There were significantly more suicide attempters and completers among the biological relatives of Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome carriers than comparison subjects, but family history of psychopathology did not significantly differ between the groups. More suicide attempts were reported among Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome carriers than among the comparison subjects.
Conclusions:
These results, based on a unique study design, provide additional evidence supporting the relationship between cholesterol metabolism and suicidal behavior.
Related Concept Videos
Cholesterol: Significance and Regulation
Considering cholesterol and...
Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents
Pharmacogenetics of Drug Targets: β₂-Adrenergic Receptors, Apo E, Thymidylate Synthase
Lipids: Dietary Sources and Requirements
Pharmacogenetic Phenotypes: Alterations in Pharmacokinetics, Drug Targets and Biologic Milieu
Lethal Alleles
Lucien Cuénot discovered lethal alleles in 1905 while studying the inheritance of coat color in mice. The agouti gene is responsible for the color of the coat in mice. This gene codes for an agouti-signaling protein, which is responsible for melanin distribution in mammals. The wild-type allele gives rise to gray-brown coat color in mice, while the mutant allele gives rise to yellow coat color. In addition to coat color, the agouti gene is associated with the yellow...
