A group of Aberdeen children, born in the 1950s, could hold the key to finding better ways to treat depression.
More than 500 subjects of a long-term study have been recruited to take part in new mental health research.
And the academics leading the £4.7million project hope many more of the original cohort of 15,000 will sign up.
Aberdeen University is one of three institutions involved in the Stratifying Resilience and Depression Longitudinally (STRADL) study.
This uses brain scans, blood tests and cognitive tests to identify common risk factors and new treatments.
Professor Alison Murray, who is currently leading the study in Aberdeen, said it “aims to reclassify depression based on biology.
“The beauty of working with the Aberdeen Children of the 1950s Cohort is that we can compare the results of people who have depression and those who don’t, not just today, but also from when they were in primary school.
“This helps us better understand why even when people are exposed to the same risk factors in life, some are resilient and don’t get depression whilst others do.
“There may be life course events, or genetic differences that predispose some to depression. There are also things we can detect in blood samples or brain scans about how they process information differently.
“We would call for any other members who haven’t yet contacted us to do so to help us come up with new ways to treat this debilitating condition.”
Any members who would like to get involved in the study should contact 01224 438443 or children1950s@abdn.ac.uk