How genes and life experiences affect depression in people from diverse backgrounds
Official title: Cross-Population Working Group on Genes and Environment in Major Depression (POP-GEM): Advancing the Understating of Etiology through Diversity
Funded at Suny Downstate Medical Center · NIH-11242071 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how genetic differences and environmental experiences relate to major depression in people from many ancestry groups.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Suny Downstate Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Brooklyn, United States) |
| Project start | March 10, 2023 |
| Project end | October 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $841,719 |
| NIH project number | 5R01MH125938-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11242071 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are people with a history of major depression, especially those from non-European ancestry groups who are currently underrepresented in genetic research.
✕Less likely to help
People without a history of depression or those from ancestry groups already well represented in prior genetic studies may not see direct short-term benefits.
What this research studies
From a patient's view, this project brings together genetic and health data from tens to hundreds of thousands of people around the world, with a focus on groups that have been left out of prior studies. Researchers will combine existing datasets to find genetic variants linked to depression, narrow down likely causal changes, and build risk scores that work better across different ancestries. They will also examine sex differences and how depression relates to other conditions like anxiety and heart disease. Much of the work uses samples and data already collected by many international collaborators.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could produce more accurate genetic risk information and lead to prevention or treatment strategies that work better for people from diverse ancestry groups.
How similar studies have gone: Large genetic studies focused on mainly European populations have identified risk genes and produced polygenic scores, but similarly large and diverse cross-population efforts are limited, so this approach is relatively novel and important.
Where this research is happening
-
Suny Downstate Medical Center
Brooklyn, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Peterson, Roseann Elizabeth — Suny Downstate Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Peterson, Roseann Elizabeth
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Trans-Nordic look at extreme major depression genetics
A large genetics study is exploring what makes extreme forms of major depression unique, by studying many thousands of people and their DNA.
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Genetic factors behind alcohol and opioid use disorders and depression in veterans
A study using genetic data from veterans to understand how genes contribute to co-occurring alcohol use, prescription opioid use, and depression.
-
Global Deep Learning effort to predict depression treatment response
A patient-focused project uses AI on brain scans to predict who with major depression will respond to rTMS treatment.
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Understanding immune dysfunction and social stress in veterans with depression
A study in U.S. veterans with major depressive disorder looks at how stress-related immune changes may be linked to depression and heart health.
-
Risk pathways to major depression using big Danish and Swedish data
A large study using health and genetic data from Denmark and Sweden will help understand what genetic and environmental factors contribute to major depression across how people grow up.
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Understanding genetic and environmental pathways to major depression in Nordic health records
A large study will look at how genes and life experiences combine over time to influence major depression, using Danish and Swedish population data.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.