2016 Young investigator grant program: Basic research-Depression

will explore the non-genetic route through which depression is transmitted multi-generationally. The research is based on an ongoing longitudinal study of families at low- and highrisk for depression. Over its 30-year course, the research has expanded from proband groups (Generation 1, G1), to their biological children (Generation 2, G2), and to grandchildren (Generation 3, G3). Each of the 6 data waves contains a comprehensive battery of family history and behavioral development, with DNA and MRI data collected at wave 5 and 6. This study investigates the heritability of neuroimaging-based phenotypes associated with familial risk for depression across generations, using SOLAR-ECLIPSE software, a newly developed genetic imaging tool, to quantify the heritability of brain morphology and white matter anomalies.