Relationships of Genes and Early-Life Experience to the Neurobiology of Suicidal Behavior

Abstract

Suicidal behavior occurs in the context of a diathesis or predisposition that is characterized by traits in multiple domains: behavioral, clinical, cognitive, personality, and biologic. These traits have their origins in combinations of genetic and early-life experiences during critical formative periods of development. The major systems where abnormalities have been observed in suicide and nonfatal suicide attempts are the serotonergic system, and the stress-response systems of the noradrenergic system and hypothalamic-pituitary- adrenal (HPA) axis. This chapter outlines the main alterations in neurobiological function that have been documented in suicide attempters and those who die by sui..