Scientists found a link between ecology, genes and tendency to depression NMH: men were more vulnerable to depression than women due to environmental factors 14:15

A group of Finnish scientists from the University of Helsinki conducted a comprehensive study on the effects of environment and genetic characteristics on the development of depression in humans. The article was published in the scientific journal magazine Nature Mental Health (MNH).

Experts noted that major depressive disorder is common in Western European countries and is increasingly detected in adolescents. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated this trend. Experts decided to study this problem, taking into account all factors of external influence (so-called “expos”) and also including genetic data in the analysis.

The scientists used the FinnTwin12 dataset, which contains information on twins born in Finland from 1983 to 1987. The researchers used two primary methods, including exosomal association studies (ExWAS) and two-dimensional modelling.

The team examined 385 environmental exposures and divided them into 12 groups. Some of these included air pollution, family relationships, and life events.
In the study, experts identified 29 exposures that were significantly associated with depressive symptoms in young adulthood and 46 exposures spanning 12 different exposure domains at age 17.

In particular, family influence emerged as the strongest predictor, highlighting the important influence of family dynamics and relationships on the development and maintenance of depressive symptoms in late adolescence and early adulthood.

However, neither of these exposures was associated with the onset of major depressive disorder in young adulthood. Additionally, men were more vulnerable to environmental factors in the development of depression compared to women. Moreover, genetic traits affect people of both sexes approximately equally.

The findings highlight the importance of understanding how genes and the environment can lead to different health outcomes depending on environmental conditions, the scientists said.

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