Project: Identifying novel subtypesofyouthdepression and anxiety usingmachinelearningmethods–alsoofferedasMBiomedSc
Supervisors:Dr.LianneSchmaal, Dr.ChrisDavey, Dr. Ben Harrison
ProjectSite:OrygentheNationalCentreofExcellenceinYouthMentalHealth,UniversityofMelbourne
Contact:Dr.LianneSchmaal,T:0477550490E:
Projectdescription:Anxiety and depression, together referred to as internalising disorders, are leading causes of disability in young Australians. Efforts to intervene at an early stage of internalising disorders are critical, but are currently hampered by low diagnostic validity and poor specificity of symptom-based classifications of young people with emerging mental disorders. This can in part be explained by the fact that current symptom-based classifications assume that psychiatric disorders are discrete and dissociable entities, and are agnostic about underlying biological mechanisms. There is a clear need for developing an alternative diagnostic framework that can guide clinicians in the treatment of young people in early stages of mental illness and that can identify young people at-risk for a progressive course of internalising symptoms.Thisprojectaimstoidentify novel subtypes ofyouthdepression and anxietybyintegratingneurobiologicalinformationwithclinicalandbehaviouraldatausingmachinelearningtechniques.
Thisproject(orpotentiallyPhDproject)willusefunctionalmagneticresonanceimaging(fMRI)anddataonsymptomdimensions.Thestudentwillbeinvolvedinacquisitionofnewneuroimagingandclinicaldata,processingofneuroimagingdataandusingadvanced statisticalmethodstoidentify novel phenotypes of youth depression and anxiety.Candidateswithaninterestinpsychology,biologicalpsychiatryandimagingneuroscienceareencouragedtoapply.Havingpriorexperiencewithneuroimaginganalysesandhavingstrongstatisticalandcomputerprogrammingskillsisdesirable.Furtherdetailaboutthisprojectisavailableuponrequest.
Project: World-wide data-sharing to detect neurobiological alterations in MDD: theworldwide ENIGMAMajor Depressive Disorderconsortium
–alsoofferedasMBiomedSc
Supervisors:Dr. LianneSchmaal
ProjectSite:OrygentheNationalCentre ofExcellence inYouthMental Health,UniversityofMelbourne
Contact:Dr. LianneSchmaal,T:0477550490,E:
Projectdescription:Majordepressivedisorder(MDD)isahighlydebilitatingdisorderthathasanenormousdetrimentalimpactonpatient'slifeandahighsocialandeconomicburden.ManystudieshaveidentifiedstructuralandfunctionalbrainalterationsinMDD.However,todate,volumetricandfunctionalbraindifferenceshavenotalwaysbeenconsistent,whichmayinpartbeexplainedbysmallsamplesizesanddifferencesinmethodologicalandclinicalcharacteristicsbetweenstudies.Toaddressthelimitedstatisticalpowerofpriorstudies,theMDDworkinggroupwithinthe“EnhancingNeuroImagingGeneticsthroughMeta-Analysis”,orENIGMA,wasinitiatedafewyearsago,see
TheoverallaimoftheENIGMAMDDconsortiumistoestablishtheneurobiologicalcorrelatesunderlyingvariationindiseaseprofileanddiseasecourse.Currently,31researchsitesfromaround theworld areparticipating in ENIGMAMDD and share neuroimaging data from >8,000 healthy controls and >2,500 MDD patients.
ThestudentwillsupportongoingENIGMAMDDwork,whichincludesdevelopmentandexecutionofdataprocessing,qualityassuranceandstatisticalanalysesprotocolsforneuroimaging(structuralMRI,restingstatefMRIandDTI),organisingandharmonisingdatabases,communicatingwithmembersoftheconsortium across the world,writingscientificpapersontheabovetopics,andincorporatingtheresearchintoaPhDthesis.Candidateswithaninterestinpsychology,biologicalpsychiatryandimagingneuroscienceareencouragedtoapply.Havingpriorexperiencewithneuroimaginganalysesandhavingstrongstatisticalandcomputerprogrammingskillsisdesirable.Furtherdetailaboutthisprojectisavailableupon request.
Project:Neurobiology of Suicide Thoughts and Behaviours in Youth with Mental Disorders
–alsoofferedasMBiomedSc
Supervisors:Dr. LianneSchmaal
ProjectSite:OrygentheNationalCentre ofExcellence inYouthMental Health,UniversityofMelbourne
Contact:Dr. LianneSchmaal,T:0477550490,E:
Projectdescription:Globally, suicide is the second most common cause of death for adolescents and young adults. More adolescents die by suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic lung disease. Suicidal thoughts and behaviours (STBs) typically emerge during adolescence, and the incidence of suicide rises sharply from childhood to adolescence (i.e. from 1.2 to 19.2 per 100.000). About 16% of teens think about suicide, and approximately 8% report making an attempt in the past year. To improve preventative intervention treatment for STBs, it is critical to identify neurobiological mechanisms and psychosocial risk factors that confer increased risk. The project aims to elucidate transdiagnostic neurobiological and social mechanisms and trajectories underlying STBs in adolescence, a critical period of development when STBs emerge.
Thestudentwill be part ofa multidisciplinary international research consortium with extensive expertise in adolescent mental health and STBs, i.e. the Help Overcome and Prevent the Emergence of Suicide (HOPES) consortium. The student will analyse large-scale international datasets from more than 14 countries world-wide and report the results in a scientific paper. The student will help organiseandharmonisedatabases,communicatewithmembersoftheconsortium across the world.Candidateswithaninterestinpsychology,biologicalpsychiatry, (youth) mental healthandimagingneuroscienceareencouragedtoapply.Havingpriorexperiencewithneuroimaginganalysesandhavingstrongstatisticalandcomputerprogrammingskillsisdesirable.Furtherdetailaboutthisprojectisavailableupon request.