Epigenetics

The conventional Western classification systems of health conditions are based on flawed science shaped by reductionist, hierarchical, and profit-driven ideologies. THEN wants to create a new paradigm built upon principles drawn from systems science, the life course perspective, developmental neurobiology, and other evidence-informed studies.

Researchers experimenting on mice found that exposure to fluoxetine (Prozac) in utero resulted in behaviors considered in animal studies to be analogous to autism in humans.

The candidate-gene approach to depression goes unsupported and is likely based on bad science, new research finds.

Biologists found that exposure to antidepressants suppresses important survival behaviors in zebrafish, an effect that persisted across three generations and was found to be more severe for males.

Attempting to locate the mechanisms of psychiatric disorder is a step in the wrong direction and fails to challenge potentially unjust social practices.

The postmodern zeitgeist of the past few decades encourages us to believe that we can endlessly reinvent ourselves untethered to our human biology. But the explosion of research on the microbiome reminds us that we are deeply embedded in an ecosystem that lives within us and around us, without which we cannot survive.

A large and rigorous meta-analysis fails to find support for the gene-environment interaction theory of depression.

A letter just published in JAMA Psychiatry suggests that “precision psychiatry” is not the paradigm shift it’s purported to be by the psychiatric establishment.

Study uncovers some of the intergenerational consequences of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).

Direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing has an “alarmingly high” 40% false-positive rate.

In this piece for Aeon, Serife Tekin argues that contrary to antirealist perspectives emphasizing the illusion of selfhood, there is such a thing as the...

A new study suggests that epigenetic changes that have been associated with trauma may actually be due to environmental toxins.

Structural competency in psychiatry emphasizes the social factors shaping patient presentations and encourages physician advocacy.

In this blog post, Dale M. Kushner explains how the field of epigenetics can illustrate the role of ancestral and transgenerational trauma in shaping our...

The daughters of children evacuated from Finland during World War II show an increased number of psychiatric hospitalizations.

From Science of Us: We are often told to "just be ourselves" as if the self is a fixed, unchanging concept. However our personalities change...

From The Conversation: According to a recent study from Japan, pregnant mice that are deprived of an essential fatty acid, called docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), are...

In this piece for Aeon, Bruce McEwen discusses how "good stress," "tolerable stress," and "toxic stress" act epigenetically on our brain structure, and how we can...

From TIME: A new scientific review suggests that yoga, meditation, and other mindfulness activities can reverse stress-related changes in genes linked to health problems and...

From U.S. News: A variety of research shows that children of parents diagnosed with depression are more likely to experience depression themselves. However, it is...

A new study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, found no link between genetics and the occurrence of depressive symptoms.

From The Conversation US: Although personalized medicine, which involves tailoring health care to each person's individual genetic makeup, has helped make progress in the treatment...

Studies of modern Native Americans have shown that “historical trauma,” the name that social workers give to the perception of historical loss passed down through...

Neuroscientific results that class humans into two categories, “male” and “female,” tend to reify gender stereotypes by giving them the appearance of objective scientific truth.

A recent commentary by Ganesan Venkatasubramanian and Matcheri Keshavan notes that efforts to identify biomarkers in people diagnosed with psychiatric disorders have been overwhelmingly...