Depression

Do you have depression? 

Does one of your family members suffer from depression?

Team Members            

Background

Depression is ranked second only to ischemic heart disease in terms of societal and economic burden of disease. In Australia, it has been estimated that depression costs our economy $3.3 billion in lost productivity each year, highlighting the urgent need for valid markers of the illness and successful treatment.

Objectives

The aims of our research are to a) identify a profile of markers from clinical, psychometric, psychophysiological, neuroimaging and genetic measures which most sensitively dissociate depression from healthy peers, b) to evaluate the effects of antidepressant treatment on these markers and c) better understand the heterogeneity and the neurobiological basis of depression and related disorders.

Our unit is currently undertaking an International Study to Predict Optimized Treatment - in Depression (iSPOT-D), the largest biomarker study ever undertaken in clinical depression.

Current Projects:

International Study to Predict Optimized Treatment - in Depression 

Towards a better understanding of heterogeneity

Toward a Gene-Brain-Behaviour Model

Predicting treatment response

Emotion perception

Neurobiological bases for depression and anxiety

Key Publications:

Gatt, J.M., Clark, R.M., Kemp, A.H., Liddell, B.J., Dobston-Stone, C., Kuan, S.A., Schofield, P.R., Williams, L.M. (2007). A Genotype-Endophenotype path model of depressed mood: Integrating Cognitive and Emotional Markers. Journal of Integrative Neuroscience, 6, 75-104. PMID: 17472225. 

Gatt, J.M., Nemeroff, C.B., Dobson-Stone, C., Paul, R.H., Bryant, R.A., Schofield, P.R., Gordon, E., Kemp, A.H., Williams, L.M. (in press). Interactions between BDNF Val66Met polymor-phism and early life stress predict brain and arousal pathways to syndromal depression and anxiety. Molecular Psychiatry. Accepted 26 November 2008). 

Joffe, R.T., Gatt, J.M., Kemp, A.H., Grieve, S., Dobson-Stone, C., Kuan, S.A., Schofield, P.R., Gordon, E. & Williams, L.M. (in press). Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor Val66Met polymorphism, the Five Factor Model of Personality and hippocampal volume: Implications for Depressive Illness. Human Brain Mapping, Jun 11. [Epub ahead of print]. PMID: 18548532.

Kemp, A.H., Felmingham, K. (in press). The Psychology & Neuroscience of Depression and Anxiety: Towards an Integrative Model of Emotion Disorders. Psychology & Neuroscience. 

Kemp, A.H., Felmingham, K., Das, P., Hughes, G., Peduto, A.S., Bryant, R.A., Williams, L.M. (2007). Influence of comorbid depression on fear in posttraumatic stress disorder: An fMRI study. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, 155, 265-269. PMID: 17572075.

Kemp, A.H., Gordon, E., Rush, A.J., Williams, L.M., (2008). Improving the prediction of treatment response in depression: Integration of clinical, cognitive, psychophysiological, neuroi-maging and genetic measures. CNS Spectrums, 13(12):1066-1086

Mathersul, D., Williams, L.M., Hopkinson, P.J., Kemp, A.H. (2008). Investigating models of affect: Relationships among EEG alpha asymmetry, depression and anxiety. Emotion, 8, 560-572.

Williams, L.M., Kemp, A.H., Felmingham, K., Liddell, B., Palmer, D., Bryant, R.A. (2007). Negativity biases to covert and overt signals of fear: Dissociation by trait anxiety and depression. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 19, 1595-1608. PMID: 17854280.