LAUSR

BACKGROUND Suicide rates among young people have been increasing in recent years, yet no validated methods are available for identifying those who are at greatest risk for suicide. Abnormalities in the medial prefrontal cortex have been previously observed in suicidal individuals, but confounding factors such as treatment and chronic illness may have contributed to these findings. Thus, here we tested whether the volume of the medial prefrontal cortex is altered in suicidal young adults who have received no treatment with psychotropic medications. METHODS Suicidality was evaluated using the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R), and volumes of four regions-of-interest (ROIs) within the medial prefrontal cortex were measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in a cohort of college students (n = 102). In addition, a secondary seed-based functional connectivity analysis was conducted using resting-state functional MRI data. Volumes and functional connectivity of the medial prefrontal cortex of young adults with high suicidality (HS; SBQ-R score > 7; n = 20) were compared to those with low suicidality (LS; SBQ-R score = 3, n = 37). RESULTS Compared to the LS group, the HS group had a significantly lower volume of the right frontal pole (p < 0.05, Bonferroni-corrected) and significantly lower functional connectivity of the right frontal pole with the bilateral inferior frontal cortex (p < 0.001, Monte-Carlo corrected). LIMITATION These findings require replication in a larger sample and extension in younger (adolescent) populations. CONCLUSION Diminished frontal pole volume and functional connectivity may be linked to elevated levels of suicidality in young people.