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The role of gene-environment interactions in endocrine-sensitive life stages for shaping mental health : focus on the RE-MEND project

Abualia, Khawla ; Cediel-Ulloa, Andrea ; Allsopp, Philip ; Augustine, Angelika ; Bergquist, Jonas ; Bornehag, Carl Gustaf LU ; Broberg, Karin LU orcid ; Caporale, Nicolò ; Comasco, Erika and di Bernardo, Diego , et al. (2026) In Frontiers in Psychiatry 17.
Abstract

The number of people seeking help for mental illness is increasing across all ages, creating a major burden for individuals, families, and the society. While personalized medicine is advancing in other fields, diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders remain largely symptom-based and fail to capture individual, sex, and gender differences in risk, manifestation, and treatment response. Early signs of illness often go unnoticed due to the lack of monitoring tools, and stigma continues to hinder prevention and care. In some phases of life, an individual’s susceptibility to mental illness is heightened and may be influenced by changes in endocrine signalling. To address these challenges, the research project Building REsilience against... (More)

The number of people seeking help for mental illness is increasing across all ages, creating a major burden for individuals, families, and the society. While personalized medicine is advancing in other fields, diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders remain largely symptom-based and fail to capture individual, sex, and gender differences in risk, manifestation, and treatment response. Early signs of illness often go unnoticed due to the lack of monitoring tools, and stigma continues to hinder prevention and care. In some phases of life, an individual’s susceptibility to mental illness is heightened and may be influenced by changes in endocrine signalling. To address these challenges, the research project Building REsilience against MEntal illness during ENDocrine-sensitive life stages (RE-MEND) has implemented an interdisciplinary approach focusing on four critical endocrine-sensitive life stages: prenatal, puberty, peripartum, and older age. The project integrates longitudinal population-based cohorts with experimental and clinical studies to identify genetic, environmental, and endocrine factors shaping susceptibility and resilience to mental illness. Multi-omics data (genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and adductomics) will be combined with neurobiological, clinical, and behavioural measures, analysed using advanced biostatistics and machine learning. RE-MEND seeks to i) identify risk and resilience factors affecting mental health; ii) deliver biomarker panels for susceptibility, disease progression, and treatment response across sensitive life stages; iii) discover novel drug targets through repurposing strategies, and iv) promote mental health literacy and reduce stigma. The integration of biological research with communication science is anticipated to result in translatable findings, supporting earlier intervention and more effective care.

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organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
endocrine-sensitive life stage, mental health, mental illness, resilience, stigma, susceptibility
in
Frontiers in Psychiatry
volume
17
article number
1738584
publisher
Frontiers Media S. A.
external identifiers
  • scopus:105032105451
  • pmid:41799821
ISSN
1664-0640
DOI
10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1738584
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: Copyright © 2026 Abualia, Cediel-Ulloa, Allsopp, Augustine, Bergquist, Bornehag, Broberg, Caporale, Comasco, di Bernardo, Domingues, Drakvik, Gennings, Gingnell, Globisch, Kippler, McSorley, Mulhern, Motwani, Nalvarte, Oudin, Rahman, Reifegerste, Rein, Skalkidou, Strain, Testa, Tsiukalo, van Wijngaarden, Yeates, Rüegg and Antczak.
id
19e743eb-472d-4867-bc4a-e3ee78e127fa
date added to LUP
2026-05-11 16:16:58
date last changed
2026-06-08 18:11:03
@article{19e743eb-472d-4867-bc4a-e3ee78e127fa,
  abstract     = {{<p>The number of people seeking help for mental illness is increasing across all ages, creating a major burden for individuals, families, and the society. While personalized medicine is advancing in other fields, diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders remain largely symptom-based and fail to capture individual, sex, and gender differences in risk, manifestation, and treatment response. Early signs of illness often go unnoticed due to the lack of monitoring tools, and stigma continues to hinder prevention and care. In some phases of life, an individual’s susceptibility to mental illness is heightened and may be influenced by changes in endocrine signalling. To address these challenges, the research project Building REsilience against MEntal illness during ENDocrine-sensitive life stages (RE-MEND) has implemented an interdisciplinary approach focusing on four critical endocrine-sensitive life stages: prenatal, puberty, peripartum, and older age. The project integrates longitudinal population-based cohorts with experimental and clinical studies to identify genetic, environmental, and endocrine factors shaping susceptibility and resilience to mental illness. Multi-omics data (genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, lipidomics, and adductomics) will be combined with neurobiological, clinical, and behavioural measures, analysed using advanced biostatistics and machine learning. RE-MEND seeks to i) identify risk and resilience factors affecting mental health; ii) deliver biomarker panels for susceptibility, disease progression, and treatment response across sensitive life stages; iii) discover novel drug targets through repurposing strategies, and iv) promote mental health literacy and reduce stigma. The integration of biological research with communication science is anticipated to result in translatable findings, supporting earlier intervention and more effective care.</p>}},
  author       = {{Abualia, Khawla and Cediel-Ulloa, Andrea and Allsopp, Philip and Augustine, Angelika and Bergquist, Jonas and Bornehag, Carl Gustaf and Broberg, Karin and Caporale, Nicolò and Comasco, Erika and di Bernardo, Diego and Domingues, Rosário and Drakvik, Elina and Gennings, Chris and Gingnell, Malin and Globisch, Daniel and Kippler, Maria and McSorley, Emeir and Mulhern, Maria and Motwani, Hitesh V. and Nalvarte, Ivan and Oudin, Anna and Rahman, Anisur and Reifegerste, Doreen and Rein, Theo and Skalkidou, Alkistis and Strain, J. J. and Testa, Giuseppe and Tsiukalo, Liudmyla and van Wijngaarden, Edwin and Yeates, Alison and Rüegg, Joëlle and Antczak, Philipp}},
  issn         = {{1664-0640}},
  keywords     = {{endocrine-sensitive life stage; mental health; mental illness; resilience; stigma; susceptibility}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  publisher    = {{Frontiers Media S. A.}},
  series       = {{Frontiers in Psychiatry}},
  title        = {{The role of gene-environment interactions in endocrine-sensitive life stages for shaping mental health : focus on the RE-MEND project}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1738584}},
  doi          = {{10.3389/fpsyt.2026.1738584}},
  volume       = {{17}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}