The androgen model of suicide completion

Area of Science:

• Neuroendocrinology
• Public Health
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Suicide completion is a major public health crisis with limited understanding of its biological underpinnings.
• Current methods lack objective markers to reliably predict suicide completion.
• Identifying biological predictors is essential for effective suicide prevention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel framework for understanding the ideation-to-completion pathway in suicide.
• To explore the role of androgens in suicide completion.
• To discuss challenges in identifying and validating clinical markers for suicide risk.

Main Methods:

• Review of direct and indirect evidence linking androgen exposure to suicide completion.
• Analysis of the impact of prenatal androgen load and adult androgen activity.
• Examination of maternal behavioral traits during pregnancy as a contributing factor.

Main Results:

• Increased prenatal androgen load leads to neuroadaptations associated with suicide completion.
• Elevated adult androgen activity also contributes to suicide completion.
• Maternal behaviors during pregnancy can influence offspring's prenatal androgen load and future suicide risk.

Conclusions:

• Both in utero androgen exposure and adult androgen levels synergistically facilitate suicide completion.
• The proposed androgen model offers a basis for developing novel predictive and preventive strategies for suicide.
• Further research into androgen's role can advance suicide prevention efforts.