Overview

• Researchers at McGill University and the Douglas Institute profiled gene expression and chromatin accessibility in thousands of brain cells from 59 people with depression and 41 controls.
• The study pinpoints a subtype of excitatory neuron involved in mood and stress regulation as showing widespread differences in gene activity.
• A distinct microglia subtype associated with inflammatory functions also exhibited altered gene programs in depressed brains.
• Access to the Douglas-Bell Canada Brain Bank enabled cell-type–resolved analysis reported in Nature Genetics.
• The team plans functional experiments to probe circuit effects and therapeutic targets, emphasizing that the findings are not yet clinically actionable.