Australian scientists will team up with Swedish researchers to develop a blood test that could give results in 24 to 48 hours to doctors to determine if people are suicidal. Gilles Guilemin from University of New South Wales (UNSW) and his team, who are said to be world leaders on the chemical, had previously demonstrated that “quinolinic” acid is involved in several brain diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, autism and schizophrenia, AAP news agency report said on Wednesday.

“We now know the mechanism and the molecule involved, so we have to find a simple way of testing it,” Guillemin said adding “We think it will take about 12 months to develop a test that could give doctors results in 24 to 48 hours.”

“It was said that till date the focus for depression has been on the neurotransmitter serotonin but it has been discovered that severely depressed people have high levels of another neurotransmitter, a chemical called quinolinic acid,” added Guillemin. PTI