
Overview
Background
The objective of my research is to improve understanding of the genetic etiology and biological mechanisms underlying risk of common psychiatric disorders, particularly those with onset during childhood and adolescence. As a Senior Research Fellow at the Child Health Research Centre, I lead a number of domestic and international collaborations that evaluate the association between polygenic risk scores, environmental variables and behaviour during childhood and adolescence. My group applies innovative statistical methods to large longitudinal datasets with information from infancy through to adulthood and to evaluate genetic and environmental contributions to risk to mental health problems. In addition, our research focuses on the potential clinical utility of polygenic risk scores in psychiatry. I have contributed to major advances in understanding of the etiology of a number of psychiatric disorders, with a major focus on depression
PhD and Honours projects are available in the group. Please contact me for more information.
Availability
- Dr Enda Byrne is:
- Available for supervision
Qualifications
- Doctor of Philosophy, The University of Queensland
Research interests
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Genomic Technologies
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Statistical and Computational methods
Research impacts
My research has contributed to advances in a number of fields through the identification of previously unknown genetic variants that contribute to risk to complex disorders. The identification of these variants opens up new avenues for developing drug targets to target the biological pathways in which they are found.
Works
Search Professor Enda Byrne’s works on UQ eSpace
2018
Other Outputs
Genetic analyses of medication-use and implications for precision medicine
Wu, Yeda, Byrne, Enda M., Zheng, Zhili, Kemper, Kathryn E., Yengo, Loic, Mallett, Andrew J., Yang, Jian, Visscher, Peter M. and Wray, Naomi R. (2018). Genetic analyses of medication-use and implications for precision medicine. doi: 10.1101/501049
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide interaction study of a proxy for stress-sensitivity and its prediction of major depressive disorder
Arnau-Soler, Aleix, Adams, Mark J., Hayward, Caroline, Thomson, Pippa A., Porteous, David, Campbell, Archie, Smith, Blair H., Black, Corri, Padmanabhan, Sandosh, McIntosh, Andrew, Wray, Naomi R., Ripke, Stephan, Mattheisen, Manuel, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Agerbo, Esben, Air, Tracy M., Andlauer, Till F.M., Bacanu, Silviu-Alin, Bækvad-Hansen, Marie, Beekman, Aartjan T.F., Bigdeli, Tim B., Binder, Elisabeth B., Blackwood, Douglas H.R., Bryois, Julien, Buttenschøn, Henriette N., Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Cai, Na ... Sullivan, Patrick F. (2018). Genome-wide interaction study of a proxy for stress-sensitivity and its prediction of major depressive disorder. PLoS ONE, 13 (12) e0209160, e0209160. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0209160
2018
Journal Article
Fasoracetam in adolescents with ADHD and glutamatergic gene network variants disrupting mGluR neurotransmitter signaling
Elia, Josephine, Ungal, Grace, Kao, Charlly, Ambrosini, Alexander, De Jesus-Rosario, Nilsa, Larsen, Lene, Chiavacci, Rosetta, Wang, Tiancheng, Kurian, Christine, Titchen, Kanani, Sykes, Brian, Hwang, Sharon, Kumar, Bhumi, Potts, Jacqueline, Davis, Joshua, Malatack, Jeffrey, Slattery, Emma, Moorthy, Ganesh, Zuppa, Athena, Weller, Andrew, Byrne, Enda, Li, Yun R., Kraft, Walter K. and Hakonarson, Hakon (2018). Fasoracetam in adolescents with ADHD and glutamatergic gene network variants disrupting mGluR neurotransmitter signaling. Nature Communications, 9 (1) 4, 1-9. doi: 10.1038/s41467-017-02244-2
2018
Journal Article
PPD ACT: an app-based genetic study of postpartum depression
Guintivano, Jerry, Krohn, Holly, Lewis, Carol, Byrne, Enda M., Henders, Anjali K., Ploner, Alexander, Kirk, Katherine, Martin, Nicholas G., Milgrom, Jeannette, Wray, Naomi R., Sullivan, Patrick F. and Meltzer-Brody, Samantha (2018). PPD ACT: an app-based genetic study of postpartum depression. Translational Psychiatry, 8 (1) 260, 260. doi: 10.1038/s41398-018-0305-5
2018
Journal Article
Is schizophrenia a risk factor for breast cancer?—evidence from genetic data
Byrne, Enda M., Ferreira, Manuel A.R., Xue, Angli, Lindström, Sara, Jiang, Xia, Yang, Jian, Easton, Douglas F., Wray, Naomi R. and Chenevix-Trench, Georgia (2018). Is schizophrenia a risk factor for breast cancer?—evidence from genetic data. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 45 (6), 1251-1256. doi: 10.1093/schbul/sby162
2018
Other Outputs
Genome-wide meta-analysis of depression identifies 102 independent variants and highlights the importance of the prefrontal brain regions
Howard, David M., Adams, Mark J., Clarke, Toni-Kim, Hafferty, Jonathan D., Gibson, Jude, Shirali, Masoud, Coleman, Jonathan R. I., Hagenaars, Saskia P., Ward, Joey, Wigmore, Eleanor M., Alloza, Clara, Shen, Xueyi, Barbu, Miruna C., Xu, Eileen Y., Whalley, Heather C., Marioni, Riccardo E., Porteous, David J., Davies, Gail, Deary, Ian J., Hemani, Gibran, Berger, Klaus, Teismann, Henning, Rawal, Rajesh, Arolt, Volker, Baune, Bernhard T., Dannlowski, Udo, Domschke, Katharina, Tian, Chao, Hinds, David A. ... McIntosh, Andrew M. (2018). Genome-wide meta-analysis of depression identifies 102 independent variants and highlights the importance of the prefrontal brain regions. doi: 10.1101/433367
2018
Journal Article
Applying polygenic risk scoring for psychiatric disorders to a large family with bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder
de Jong, Simone, Abdalla Diniz, Mateus Jose, Saloma, Andiara, Gadelha, Ary, Santoro, Marcos L., Ota, Vanessa K., Noto, Cristiano, Curtis, Charlesg, Newhouse, Stephen J., Patel, Hamel, Hall, Lynsey S., O'Reilly, Paul F., Belangero, Sintia, Bressan, Rodrigo A., Breen, Gerome, Wray, Naomi R., Ripke, Stephan, Mattheisen, Manuel, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Adams, Mark J., Agerbo, Esben, Air, Tracy M., Andlauer, Till F. M., Bacanu, Silviu-Alin, Baekvad-Hansen, Marie, Beekman, Aartjan T. F., Bigdeli, Tim B. ... Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder Working Groups of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (2018). Applying polygenic risk scoring for psychiatric disorders to a large family with bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder. Communications Biology, 1 (163) 163. doi: 10.1038/s42003-018-0155-y
2018
Other Outputs
Genome-wide association study of suicide attempt in psychiatric disorders identifies association with major depression polygenic risk scores
Mullins, Niamh, Bigdeli, Tim B., Børglum, Anders D, Coleman, Jonathan R I, Demontis, Ditte, Fanous, Ayman H., Mehta, Divya, Power, Robert A., Ripke, Stephan, Stahl, Eli A, Starnawska, Anna, Anjorin, Adebayo, Corvin, Aiden, Sanders, Alan R, Forstner, Andreas J, Reif, Andreas, Koller, Anna C, Świątkowska, Beata, Baune, Bernhard T, Müller-Myhsok, Bertram, Konte, Bettina, Penninx, Brenda WJH, Pato, Carlos, Zai, Clement, Rujescu, Dan, Quested, Digby, Levinson, Douglas F, Binder, Elisabeth B, Byrne, Enda M ... Lewis, Cathryn M (2018). Genome-wide association study of suicide attempt in psychiatric disorders identifies association with major depression polygenic risk scores. doi: 10.1101/416008
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide association analyses identify 44 risk variants and refine the genetic architecture of major depression
Wray, Naomi R., Ripke, Stephan, Mattheisen, Manuel, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Adams, Mark J., Agerbo, Esben, Air, Tracy M., Andlauer, Till M. F., Bacanu, Silviu-Alin, Baekvad-Hansen, Marie, Beekman, Aartjan F. T., Bigdeli, Tim B., Binder, Elisabeth B., Blackwood, Douglas R. H., Bryois, Julien, Buttenschon, Henriette N., Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Cai, Na, Castelao, Enrique, Christensen, Jane Hvarregaard, Clarke, Toni-Kim, Coleman, Jonathan I. R., Colodro-Conde, Lucia, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Craddock, Nick, Crawford, Gregory E., Crowley, Cheynna A. ... Sullivan, Patrick F. (2018). Genome-wide association analyses identify 44 risk variants and refine the genetic architecture of major depression. Nature Genetics, 50 (5), 668-+. doi: 10.1038/s41588-018-0090-3
2018
Conference Publication
PHENOTYPIC AND GENETIC ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN SCHIZOPHRENIA AND RETINAL VESSEL DIAMETER
Meier, Madeline, Byrne, Enda, Martin, Nicholas, Wong, Tien and Sim, Xueling (2018). PHENOTYPIC AND GENETIC ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN SCHIZOPHRENIA AND RETINAL VESSEL DIAMETER. 6th Biennial Conference of the Schizophrenia-International-Research-Society (SIRS), Florence Italy, Apr 04-08, 2018. OXFORD: OXFORD UNIV PRESS.
2018
Journal Article
Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and in regions under strong background selection
Pardiñas, Antonio F, Holmans, Peter, Pocklington, Andrew J, Escott-Price, Valentina, Ripke, Stephan, Carrera, Noa, Legge, Sophie E, Bishop, Sophie, Cameron, Darren, Hamshere, Marian L, Han, Jun, Hubbard, Leon, Lynham, Amy, Mantripragada, Kiran, Rees, Elliott, MacCabe, James H, McCarroll, Steven A, Baune, Bernhard T, Breen, Gerome, Byrne, Enda M., Dannlowski, Udo, Eley, Thalia C, Hayward, Caroline, Martin, Nicholas G., McIntosh, Andrew M, Plomin, Robert, Porteous, David J, Wray, Naomi R, Caballero, Armando ... CRESTAR Consortium (2018). Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and in regions under strong background selection. Nature Genetics, 50 (3), 381-389. doi: 10.1038/s41588-018-0059-2
2018
Journal Article
Genome-wide gene-environment interaction in depression: a systematic evaluation of candidate genes: the childhood trauma working-group of PGC-MDD
Van der Auwera, Sandra, Peyrot, Wouter J., Milaneschi, Yuri, Hertel, Johannes, Baune, Bernhard, Breen, Gerome, Byrne, Enda, Dunn, Erin C, Fisher, Helen, Homuth, Georg, Levinson, Douglas, Lewis, Cathryn, Mills, Natalie, Mullins, Niamh, Nauck, Matthias, Pistis, Giorgio, Preisig, Martin, Rietschel, Marcella, Ripke, Stephan, Sullivan, Patrick, Teumer, Alexander, Völzke, Henry, Major Depressive Disorder Working Group of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, Boomsma, Dorret I., Wray, Naomi R., Penninx, Brenda and Grabe, Hans (2018). Genome-wide gene-environment interaction in depression: a systematic evaluation of candidate genes: the childhood trauma working-group of PGC-MDD. American Journal of Medical Genetics, Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 177 (1), 40-49. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32593
2018
Journal Article
Association of whole-genome and NETRIN1 signaling pathway–derived polygenic risk scores for major depressive disorder and white matter microstructure in the UK Biobank
Barbu, Miruna C., Zeng, Yanni, Shen, Xueyi, Cox, Simon R., Clarke, Toni-Kim, Gibson, Jude, Adams, Mark J., Johnstone, Mandy, Haley, Chris S., Lawrie, Stephen M., Deary, Ian J., Major Depressive Disorder Working Group of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, Wray, Naomi R., Ripke, Stephan, Mattheisen, Manuel, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Adams, Mark J., Agerbo, Esben, Air, Tracy M., Andlauer, Till F.M., Bacanu, Silviu-Alin, Bækvad-Hansen, Marie, Beekman, Aartjan T.F., Bigdeli, Tim B., Binder, Elisabeth B., Blackwood, Douglas H.R., Bryois, Julien ... Whalley, Heather C. (2018). Association of whole-genome and NETRIN1 signaling pathway–derived polygenic risk scores for major depressive disorder and white matter microstructure in the UK Biobank. Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging, 4 (1), 91-100. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.07.006
2017
Journal Article
Hair Cortisol in Twins: Heritability and Genetic Overlap with Psychological Variables and Stress-System Genes
Rietschel, Liz, Streit, Fabian, Zhu, Gu, McAloney, Kerrie, Frank, Josef, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Witt, Stephanie H., Binz, Tina M., Bolton, Jennifer L., Hayward, Caroline, Direk, Nese, Anderson, Anna, Huffman, Jennifer, Wilson, James F., Campbell, Harry, Rudan, Igor, Wright, Alan, Hastie, Nicholas, Wild, Sarah H., Velders, Fleur P., Hofman, Albert, Uitterlinden, Andre G., Lahti, Jari, Räikkönen, Katri, Kajantie, Eero, Widen, Elisabeth, Palotie, Aarno, Eriksson, Johan G., Kaakinen, Marika ... Rietschel, Marcella (2017). Hair Cortisol in Twins: Heritability and Genetic Overlap with Psychological Variables and Stress-System Genes. Scientific Reports, 7 (1) 15351, 15351. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-11852-3
2017
Journal Article
Investigating the relationship between iron and depression
Mills, Natalie T., Maier, Robert, Whitfield, John B., Wright, Margaret J., Colodro-Conde, Lucia, Byrne, Enda M., Scott, James G., Byrne, Gerard J., Hansell, Narelle K., Vinkhuyzen, Anna A. E., CouvyDuchesne, Baptiste, Montgomery, Grant W., Henders, Anjali K., Martin, Nicholas G., Wray, Naomi R. and Benyamin, Beben (2017). Investigating the relationship between iron and depression. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 94, 148-155. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2017.07.006
2017
Journal Article
Inference in Psychiatry via 2-Sample Mendelian Randomization-From Association to Causal Pathway?
Byrne, Enda M, Yang, Jian and Wray, Naomi R (2017). Inference in Psychiatry via 2-Sample Mendelian Randomization-From Association to Causal Pathway?. JAMA psychiatry, 74 (12), 1191-1192. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.3162
2017
Conference Publication
ENRICHMENT OF GENETIC VARIANTS ASSOCIATED WITH CLINICAL RESPONSE TO LITHIUM IN CIRCADIAN CLOCK SYSTEM GENE SETS
Heilbronner, Urs, Papiol, Sergi, McCarthy, Michael, Nievergelt, Caroline, Byrne, Enda and Schulze, Thomas G. (2017). ENRICHMENT OF GENETIC VARIANTS ASSOCIATED WITH CLINICAL RESPONSE TO LITHIUM IN CIRCADIAN CLOCK SYSTEM GENE SETS. 24th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Jerusalem Israel, Oct 30-Nov 04, 2016. AMSTERDAM: ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2016.09.414
2017
Journal Article
Does childhood trauma moderate polygenic risk for depression? A meta-analysis of 5,765 subjects from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium
Peyrot, Wouter J., Van der Auwera, Sandra, Milaneschi, Yuri, Dolan, Conor V., Madden, Pamela A. F., Sullivan, Patrick F., Strohmaier, Jana, Ripke, Stephan, Rietschel, Marcella, Nivard, Michel G., Mullins, Niamh, Montgomery, Grant W., Henders, Anjali K., Heat, Andrew C., Fisher, Helen L., Dunn, Erin C., Byrne, Enda M., Air, Tracy A., Baune, Bernhard T., Breen, Gerome, Levinson, Douglas F., Lewis, Cathryn M., Martin, Nick G., Nelson, Elliot N., Boomsma, Dorret I., Grabe, Hans J., Wray, Naomi R. and Penninx, Brenda W. J. H. (2017). Does childhood trauma moderate polygenic risk for depression? A meta-analysis of 5,765 subjects from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium. Biological Psychiatry, 84 (2), 138-147. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.09.009
2017
Journal Article
A direct test of the diathesis–stress model for depression
Colodro-Conde, L., Couvy-Duchesne, B., Zhu, G., Coventry, W. L., Byrne, E. M., Gordon, S., Wright, M. J., Montgomery, G. W., Madden, P. A. F., Ripke, S., Eaves, L. J., Heath, A. C., Wray, N. R., Medland, S. E. and Martin, N. G. (2017). A direct test of the diathesis–stress model for depression. Molecular Psychiatry, 23 (7), 1590-1596. doi: 10.1038/mp.2017.130
2017
Journal Article
Genome-wide association study of borderline personality disorder reveals genetic overlap with bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia.
Witt, S. H., Streit, F., Jungkunz, M., Frank, J., Awasthi, S., Reinbold, C. S., Treutlein, J., Degenhardt, F., Forstner, A. J., Heilmann-Heimbach, S., Dietl, L., Schwarze, C. E., Schendel, D., Strohmaier, J., Abdellaoui, A., Adolfsson, R., Air, T. M., Akil, H., Alda, M., Alliey-Rodriguez, N., Andreassen, O. A., Babadjanova, G., Bass, N. J., Bauer, M., Baune, B. T., Bellivier, F., Bergen, S., Bethell, A., Biernacka, J. M. ... Rietschel, M. (2017). Genome-wide association study of borderline personality disorder reveals genetic overlap with bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia.. Translational psychiatry, 7 (6), e1155-e1155. doi: 10.1038/tp.2017.115
Funding
Current funding
Past funding
Supervision
Availability
- Dr Enda Byrne is:
- Available for supervision
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Available projects
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Gene Environment interactions in Mental health trajectories of Youth (Youth-GEMs)
Mental health problems are common in young people, with life-long enduring impacts on individuals, families and societies. More than 63% of mental disorders throughout the life span emerge before 24 years of age, peaking at 14.5-18 years. Adolescence and young adulthood represent a critical period that forecasts the level of mental wellbeing over lifetime and interventions early in life may be critical in preventing later mental illness.
The Child and Youth Mental Health Group is part of an Australian and European Union-funded consortium called Youth-GEMs that seeks to characterise and model trajectories of mental health in youth. In collaboration with researchers from universities in Europe, this project will combine datasets from longitudinal cohort studies from around the world to investigate the interplay between genetic, epigenetic, and environmental risk in influencing mental health across development.
This project will involve advanced data analytics and statistical inference and will involve combining and analysing different types of data including genetic, clinical and environmental data. The ultimate goal is to develop predictive tools that can be used to aid clinical decision-making in youth mental health.
We are seeking a motivated PhD scholar with a background in genetics, biomedical science, psychology, data science, machine learning or a related field to join our team and work closely with collaborators overseas on this project. There is also the possibility to spend time overseas at one of the collaborating labs.
Supervision history
Current supervision
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Doctor Philosophy
Genetics of Neurodevelopmental Disorders and associated comorbidities
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Allan McRae
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Doctor Philosophy
Gene Environment interactions in Mental health trajectories of Youth
Principal Advisor
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Doctor Philosophy
Genetics of childhood onset psychiatric symptoms, their persistence and comorbidity with other traits
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray
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Doctor Philosophy
ELUCIDATING LIFESTYLE AND GENETIC FACTORS UNDERLYING DEPRESSION HETEROGENEITY AND TREATMENT RESPONSE
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray
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Doctor Philosophy
Multi-Omic Analyses of a Clinical Trial Cohort of Young People at Ultra-High Risk for Psychosis
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Allan McRae, Professor Naomi Wray
Completed supervision
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2023
Doctor Philosophy
The Genomics of Perinatal Depression
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray
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2023
Doctor Philosophy
Embracing Complexity in Psychiatric Genetics: Investigating Heterogeneity and Pleiotropy in Depression and Major Psychiatric Disorders
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Honorary Professor Sarah Medland
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2022
Doctor Philosophy
Genetic and Environmental Influences on Sleep and Internalising Symptoms in Adolescence
Associate Advisor
Media
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