Researchers at the University Medical Center Göttingen, Germany, have discovered that heart rate deceleration within the first 45 seconds of brain stimulation predicts treatment success in major depression up to six weeks later. The study of 75 patients found that monitoring cardiac responses during transcranial magnetic stimulation could help clinicians identify which patients will benefit most from treatment. Roberto Goya-Maldonado and colleagues at the University Medical Center Göttingen published these findings, demonstrating a potential biomarker for personalizing depression therapy.

A groundbreaking Genomic Press interview explores Dr. Najaf Amin's innovative approach to depression genetics at Oxford University. The internationally acclaimed researcher has identified novel metabolites, rare gene variants, and systemic pathways that expand current understanding of depression's biological underpinnings. Her discoveries, including the RCL1 gene mutation, 124 depression-linked metabolites and 13 types of gut bacteria, provide new insights into the multifactorial nature of this prevalent psychiatric disorder and suggest potential avenues for more targeted therapeutic approaches.

Around 70% of women who suffer a sexual assault develop PTSD; now scientists have shown that many of these women show a marked reduction in the usual communication between two important brain areas involved in processing and control of emotions, the amygdala and the pre-frontal cortex. In some women, synchronisation between these areas can drop to near zero. This work is presented at the ECNP conference in Amsterdam.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has selected Salk neuroscientist Terrence Sejnowski, PhD, to receive a 2025 NIH Director’s Pioneer Award. The NIH award will provide $3.5 million over the next five years to support his lab’s latest project, which will use advanced computational techniques to analyze and model the neural circuit dynamics of working memory. The findings will help neuroscientists better understand and treat memory issues in mental disorders such as schizophrenia, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).