The concept of biological embedding has gained substantial traction as a framework for understanding the roots of complex multifactorial phenomena in health and disease. A body of research over several decades indicates that early life experiences have profound consequences for health in adulthood, including mental health, as a consequence of establishing long-term health gradients (1). Early interventions have been proposed to have an enhanced impact on health trajectories in part because they act at a time of enhanced plasticity (2). Early-life adversity in the form of physical and sexual abuse or severe neglect is well recognized to increase the risk of suicide (3). It has been challenging, however, to elucidate biologic mechanisms that underlie long-term changes in brain and behavior that are associated with the increased risk.
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