{
  "id": 10076352,
  "title": "Suicidal behaviors are more heritable than depression, new twin study finds",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/26/suicidal-behaviors-are-more-heritable-than-depression-new-twin-study",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-09-26T22:00:29.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "PsyPost",
    "slug": "psypost",
    "url": "https://www.psypost.org/suicidal-behaviors-are-more-heritable-than-depression-new-twin-study-finds/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A recent twin study has found that suicidal behaviors are more heritable than depression, according to research published in Behavior Genetics. The study, conducted on over 2,876 young adult twins of European ancestry, examined three aspects of suicidal thoughts and behaviors - suicidal ideation, suicide plans, and suicide attempts. The researchers discovered that the heritability of suicidal behaviors is estimated between 51% and 80%, significantly higher than the heritability of major depressive disorder, which was estimated to be 39% to 41%. This suggests that genetic factors play a larger role in the development of suicidal thoughts and behaviors compared to major depressive disorder. The genetic correlation between the three types of suicidal thoughts and behaviors was also strong, indicating a shared genetic architecture between main depressive disorder diagnosis and suicidal behaviors. However, the study did note that shared environmental factors contributing to major depressive disorder were largely distinct from those influencing suicidal thoughts and behaviors.",
  "summary": "A new analysis of young adult twins suggests that suicidal behaviors are highly heritable. While they share moderate genetic overlap with major depression, the unique environmental factors triggering these behaviors remain largely distinct.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}