ADHD

Linking GWAS to pharmacological treatments for psychiatric disorders

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified multiple disease-associated genetic variations across different psychiatric disorders raising the question of how these genetic variants relate to the corresponding pharmacological treatments. In this talk, I will outline our work investigating whether functional information from a range of open bioinformatics datasets such as protein interaction network (PPI), brain eQTL, and gene expression pattern across the brain can uncover the relationship between GWAS-identified genetic variation and the genes targeted by current drugs for psychiatric disorders. Focusing on four psychiatric disorders---ADHD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and major depressive disorder---we assess relationships between the gene targets of drug treatments and GWAS hits and show that while incorporating information derived from functional bioinformatics data, such as the PPI network and spatial gene expression, can reveal links for bipolar disorder, the overall correspondence between treatment targets and GWAS-implicated genes in psychiatric disorders rarely exceeds null expectations. This relatively low degree of correspondence across modalities suggests that the genetic mechanisms driving the risk for psychiatric disorders may be distinct from the pathophysiological mechanisms used for targeting symptom manifestations through pharmacological treatments and that novel approaches for understanding and treating psychiatric disorders may be required.

Unpacking Nature from Nurture: Understanding how Family Processes Affect Child and Adolescent Mental Health

Mental Health problems among youth constitutes an area of significant social, educational, clinical, policy and public health concern. Understanding processes and mechanisms that underlie the development of mental health problems during childhood and adolescence requires theoretical and methodological integration across multiple scientific domains, including developmental science, neuroscience, genetics, education and prevention science. The primary focus of this presentation is to examine the relative role of genetic and family environmental influences on children’s emotional and behavioural development. Specifically, a complementary array of genetically sensitive and longitudinal research designs will be employed to examine the role of early environmental adversity (e.g. inter-parental conflict, negative parenting practices) relative to inherited factors in accounting for individual differences in children’s symptoms of psychopathology (e.g. depression, aggression, ADHD ). Examples of recent applications of this research to the development of evidence-based intervention programmes aimed at reducing psychopathology in the context of high-risk family settings will also be presented.

Cognitive and intelligence measures for ADHD identification by machine learning models

FENS Forum 2024

Allergies and IL-4 shape postnatal cerebellar development via microglia-mediated neuronal pruning to induce ADHD-like behaviors in mice

IS THE ADHD BRAIN A SLEEPY BRAIN? Electroencephalographic markers of sleep intrusions in awake, behaving ADHD adults

Neuroinflammatory mechanisms of pain hypersensitization in a mouse model of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

Speech signal analysis to classify Bipolar Disorder symptoms in ADHD patients

Exposure to nanoplastics induces attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-like phenotype

FENS Forum 2024

Neuroinflammatory mechanisms of pain hypersensitization in a mouse model of ADHD

FENS Forum 2024

Relationship between cortical excitability and inhibitory control performance in adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): A pilot study

FENS Forum 2024