Identifying risk markers for depression has long been an elusive goal in psychiatric
research. These efforts have been undertaken using a variety of methods investigating
environmental, genetic, physiological, and neural candidate markers (
1
,
2
,
3
,
4
). The search for useful and valid risk markers for depression has been plagued by
small sample sizes, inconsistent effects, and likely overestimated effect sizes. Even
large consortia formed to overcome issues of low statistical power in this endeavor
have yet to identify large and replicable effects when seeking neural markers of depression.
Illustrative of this point, the ENIGMA (Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics through Meta
Analysis) consortium reported only a small effect of reduced hippocampal volumes in
patients with depression compared with those without depression when combining cohorts
from around the world (
5
). The clinical utility of such small, cross-sectional effects is likely limited,
suggesting that new approaches to the search for risk markers of depression are needed.
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References
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
September 20,
2022
Received:
September 16,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Society of Biological Psychiatry.
ScienceDirect
Access this article on ScienceDirectLinked Article
- Putamen Structure and Function in Familial Risk for Depression: A Multimodal Imaging StudyBiological PsychiatryVol. 92Issue 12
- PreviewThe putamen has been implicated in depressive disorders, but how its structure and function increase depression risk is not clearly understood. Here, we examined how putamen volume, neuronal density, and mood-modulated functional activity relate to family history and prospective course of depression.
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