Towards An Etiological Understanding Of The Comorbidity Of Psychiatric Disorders
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$997,883.00
Summary
Pyschiatric disorders are common disorders with both genetic and environmental etilogy. The disorders are characterised both by significant overlap of symptoms and by significant heterogenity of symptoms within disorders. The availability of genome-wide genotypes allows us, for the first time, to investigate co-morbidity directly at the molecular level. Understanding the nature of co-morbidity between disorders nay be an important key to effective treatment.
The Aetiology Of Alcohol Use Disorders In Adulthood: A Generational Perspective
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$630,927.00
Summary
This study aims to investigate the causes of alcohol problems in adult Australians. We will follow-up participants from a birth cohort study who are now in their thirties. We will assess long term outcomes from in-utero exposure to alcohol and biological, developmental and genetic predictors of alcohol disorders in adulthood. This study also aims to study genetic factors which may be important in the development of alcohol abuse and dependence.
Optimising Early Interventions For Young People With Emerging Mood Disorder
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,653,052.00
Summary
One of our greatest health challenges is to develop highly-personalised interventions for teenagers and young adults with emerging mood disorders, like major depression or bipolar disorder. This new Australian centre combines our national expertise and links it with research innovation and training in key European and North American centres. It tests the viability of selecting the best treatments for young people with mood disorders on the basis of novel genetic, neuropsychological, circadian, i ....One of our greatest health challenges is to develop highly-personalised interventions for teenagers and young adults with emerging mood disorders, like major depression or bipolar disorder. This new Australian centre combines our national expertise and links it with research innovation and training in key European and North American centres. It tests the viability of selecting the best treatments for young people with mood disorders on the basis of novel genetic, neuropsychological, circadian, imaging, immunological or clinical methods.Read moreRead less
From Linkage To Genes Conferring Susceptibility To Schizophrenia: Investigation Of Candidate Genes On Chromosome 6p
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$462,250.00
Summary
Schizophrenia is a potentially disabling disorder with severe impact on the individual, the family and the community. The risk that a child born today will develop schizophrenia is about 1%. Genetic factors play a major predisposing role in schizophrenia, but environmental factors contribute as well. The molecular causes of schizophrenia are yet to be discovered, as knowledge about complex brain functions and their disorders is rapidly increasing. The identification and characterisation of genet ....Schizophrenia is a potentially disabling disorder with severe impact on the individual, the family and the community. The risk that a child born today will develop schizophrenia is about 1%. Genetic factors play a major predisposing role in schizophrenia, but environmental factors contribute as well. The molecular causes of schizophrenia are yet to be discovered, as knowledge about complex brain functions and their disorders is rapidly increasing. The identification and characterisation of genetic factors involved in brain function and dysfunction is likely to bring about novel insights into the neural and molecular mechanisms underlying schizophrenia. There is evidence, reported by several groups including our own, that genes, co-segregating with schizophrenia in families are located in a region on chromosome 6p. By fine-grain genetic dissection of this region, we and others have found that the gene coding for the protein dysbindin is associated with schizophrenia. Our aim is to identify the DNA variant(s) in the dysbindin gene, as well as variants in other candidate genes that may be located in chromosome 6p. We will use state-of-the art methods and information on genes and DNA variants, made available through the Human Genome Project. Once genetic variants are identified, we will analyse gene expression in post mortem brain tissue of persons with schizophrenia and study the distribution and function of the proteins coded by the identified genes. Our ultimate goal is to identify specific genetic factors involved in the brain dysfunction characterising schizophrenia. If successful, this should lead to clues about the causes of the disorder. In addition, the study will contribute to the development of methods for early diagnosis and prevention. Possibly, the most important outcome will be the identification of molecular targets for novel and more specific pharmacological treatments that may eventually replace current symptom-oriented antipsychotic medications.Read moreRead less
Inflammatory Cytokines As Risk Factors For The Development Of Both Depression And Osteoporosis In Men
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$381,091.00
Summary
Both depression and osteoporosis impose a substantial public health burden on society and there is now research to suggest that these conditions are related. This study will examine a potential common mechanism, systemic inflammation, which may underlie both diseases. It will focus on markers of systemic inflammation, examine their association to both depression and bone fragility and determine what role they play in explaining the relationship between the disorders.
Motor Functioning In Autism And Asperger's Disorder: Furthering Current Neurobehavioural And Clinical Definitions
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$354,932.00
Summary
While it is well known that autism and Asperger's disorder are associated with social, communicative, and behavioural symptoms, it is less well known that affected individuals also have considerable movement and coordination difficulties. For example, these children often have problems with hand writing, walking, hopping, skipping, catching, and running. These skills are very important for success at school; for example, if children are unable to participate in school sports they often feel isol ....While it is well known that autism and Asperger's disorder are associated with social, communicative, and behavioural symptoms, it is less well known that affected individuals also have considerable movement and coordination difficulties. For example, these children often have problems with hand writing, walking, hopping, skipping, catching, and running. These skills are very important for success at school; for example, if children are unable to participate in school sports they often feel isolated and rejected from the peer group. Also, hand writing problems have a significant impact on children's academic performance. Our previous research has suggested that there may be particular patterns of motor problems that characterise individuals with autism and Asperger's disorder. Our proposed research aims to use the kinds of 3D motion analysis technology used in the movie industry to capture exactly how people affected by these conditions move and respond to the environment. This study will enable us to highlight particular parts of the brain-motor circuitry that are affected by these disorders and will also enable us to more clearly distinguish how autism is different from Asperger's disorder. Ultimately, it is hoped that our motor investigations will lead to improved assessment and interventions for these disorders.Read moreRead less
Life Course Trajectories And Neuropsychiatric Outcomes In An E-cohort Of High Risk Children Of Mothers With Psychosis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$796,484.00
Summary
This study investigates how genetic and environment factors operate over the life course to increase risk of adverse outcomes for children of women with severe mental illness. We examine the clustering of neuropsychiatric outcomes in families and individuals, the role of developmental adverse life events in the risk for these outcomes, and the children's physical morbidity and offending profiles. This is an electronic cohort (e-cohort), constructed by record linkage across many databases.
Neurobiological ‘risk’ And ‘resilience’ Biomarkers Of Severe Mental Illness
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$926,980.00
Summary
Mental disorders of childhood (schizotypal disorder, autism spectrum disorders) and adolescence (psychoses, schizophrenia) represent a major burden of disease. We will use sophisticated neuroimaging to examine trajectories of brain growth from childhood to adulthood and identify factors (stress, drugs, inflammation, genes) relevant to risk and resilience to developing these disorders. This will lead to novel early interventions to reduce or ameliorate these conditions.
Prevalence report by the Australian Advisory Board on Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) estimated that 1 child in every 160 children in the 6-12 year-old age group is affected by ASD. There is no cure for ASD and the causes are not understood. We propose that sex hormones may play a role in the development of these disorders. We will test this hypothesis using knockout and transgenic mouse models which have social interaction deficits and brain structure reminiscent of these disorders.
Schizophrenia affects, on average, 1% of the population over a lifetime and accounts for 2.6% of the global burden of disease and disability, according to a joint study by the World Health Organization and the World Bank. It is a complex disorder involving both genetic and environmental risk factors, but the specific causation remains poorly understood. People with schizophrenia experience symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations, distorted perception of reality, and progressive loss of mot ....Schizophrenia affects, on average, 1% of the population over a lifetime and accounts for 2.6% of the global burden of disease and disability, according to a joint study by the World Health Organization and the World Bank. It is a complex disorder involving both genetic and environmental risk factors, but the specific causation remains poorly understood. People with schizophrenia experience symptoms such as delusions and hallucinations, distorted perception of reality, and progressive loss of motivation, which disrupt personal development. Recent research demonstrates that underlying cognitive impairments, affecting reasoning, memory, planning ability and information processing, are at the core of the disorder and account for a high proportion of these handicaps. In a study involving 112 families with members suffering from schizophrenia, Western Australian researchers carried out detailed investigations of brain cognitive functioning, coupled with a complete genome scan. They identified, in about 50% of these families, a variety of schizophrenia characterized by multiple cognitive deficits, which turned out to be linked to a particular segment of chromosome 6. It was exactly in the chromosomal region where US investigators had previously found genetic linkage with the symptoms of schizophrenia in a large series of Irish families. In this project, the Western Australian and US teams, together with a group of Dutch researchers, will embark on a joint search for the gene (or genes) on chromosome 6, contributing to cognitive deficits in schizophrenia. They will assess a further large series of patients and controls, and conduct molecular genetic studies aiming to pinpoint the specific gene defect or variant. If successful, the project will have far-reaching implications for defining novel drug targets and treatment strategies for this disabling disorder.Read moreRead less