Objective This study aimed to explore the relationship between childhood physical abuse and suicidal ideation considering the effects of genetic and environmental factors in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by focusing on brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) polymorphism and social support, respectively.Methods One-hundred fourteen patients with PTSD and 94 healthy controls (HCs) were genotyped with respect to BDNF Val66Met polymorphism. All participants underwent psychological assessments. The hierarchical regression analysis and the simple slope analysis were conducted.Results As for patients with PTSD, the moderation effect of BDNF polymorphism was significant but not for social support. Specifically, the BDNF Val/Val genotype worked as a risk factor and strengthens the relationship between childhood physical abuse and suicidal ideation. As for the HCs, the significant moderation effect was found only in social support, but not for BDNF polymorphism. The relationship between childhood physical abuse and suicidal ideation was weakened for the HCs with high social support.Conclusion This study demonstrated a significant BDNF genetic vulnerability for suicide in patients with PTSD who experienced childhood physical abuse. Our results suggested that social support provided a mitigating effect on the relationship between childhood physical abuse and suicidal ideation only in the HCs.

Studies of the continuity of psychopathology symptoms mainly involved the traditional conceptualization that mental disorders are discrete entities. However, high comorbidity rates suggest a few transdiagnostic factors that underlie individual disorders. Therefore, the present study examined the validity of transdiagnostic factors in predicting homotypic and heterotypic continuity of comorbidity classes across two waves in a nationally representative sample. We conducted a latent transition analysis to investigate how transdiagnostic factors differentially affect the transition probabilities of comorbidity classes across time. Results found a notable predictive validity of transdiagnostic factors: (a) internalizing strongly predicted the stability of the internalizing class and transition from the externalizing class to internalizing class, and (b) externalizing predicted the transition from the internalizing class to externalizing class. The study also found a more dynamic prediction pattern leading to equifinality and multifinality of psychopathology symptoms. The findings suggest that transdiagnostic factors can provide information on how individuals’ symptom manifestations change over time, highlighting the potential benefits of incorporating transdiagnostic factors into assessment, treatment, and prevention.

Given the long history, the field of electroceutical and bioelectric therapy has grown impressively, recognized as the main modality of mental health treatments along with psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy. Electroceutical and bioelectric therapy comprises electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), deep brain stimulation (DBS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), and other brain stimulation techniques. Much empirical research has been published regarding the application guidelines, mechanism of action, and efficacy of respective brain stimulation techniques, but no comparative study that delineates the advantages and limitations of each therapy exists for a comprehensive understanding of each technique. This review provides a comparison of existing electroceutical and bioelectric techniques, primarily focusing on the therapeutic advantages and limitations of each therapy in the current electroceutical and bioelectric field.