Dr Enda Byrne
Dr

Enda Byrne

Email: 

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

  • Genomic Technologies

  • 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.

Search Professor Enda Byrne’s works on UQ eSpace

196 works between 2007 and 2025
All (196) Journal Article (149) Book Chapter (1) Conference Publication (31) Other Outputs (15)

121 - 140 of 196 works

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

Genome-wide gene-environment interaction in depression: a systematic evaluation of candidate genes: the childhood trauma working-group of PGC-MDD

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

Association of whole-genome and NETRIN1 signaling pathway–derived polygenic risk scores for major depressive disorder and white matter microstructure in the UK Biobank

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

Hair Cortisol in Twins: Heritability and Genetic Overlap with Psychological Variables and Stress-System Genes

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

Investigating the relationship between iron and depression

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

Inference in Psychiatry via 2-Sample Mendelian Randomization-From Association to Causal Pathway?

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

ENRICHMENT OF GENETIC VARIANTS ASSOCIATED WITH CLINICAL RESPONSE TO LITHIUM IN CIRCADIAN CLOCK SYSTEM GENE SETS

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

Does childhood trauma moderate polygenic risk for depression? A meta-analysis of 5,765 subjects from the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium

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

A direct test of the diathesis–stress model for depression

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

Genome-wide association study of borderline personality disorder reveals genetic overlap with bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia.

2017

Journal Article

Collaborative meta-analysis finds no evidence of a strong interaction between stress and 5-HTTLPR genotype contributing to the development of depression

Culverhouse, R. C., Saccone, N. L., Horton, A. C., Ma, Y., Anstey, K. J., Banaschewski, T., Burmeister, M., Cohen-Woods, S., Etain, B., Fisher, H. L., Goldman, N., Guillaume, S., Horwood, J., Juhasz, G., Lester, K. J., Mandelli, L., Middeldorp, C. M., Olie, E., Villafuerte, S., Air, T. M., Araya, R., Bowes, L., Burns, R., Byrne, E. M., Coffey, C., Coventry, W. L., Gawronski, K. A. B., Glei, D., Hatzimanolis, A. ... Bierut, L. J. (2017). Collaborative meta-analysis finds no evidence of a strong interaction between stress and 5-HTTLPR genotype contributing to the development of depression. Molecular Psychiatry, 23 (1), 133-142. doi: 10.1038/mp.2017.44

Collaborative meta-analysis finds no evidence of a strong interaction between stress and 5-HTTLPR genotype contributing to the development of depression

2017

Journal Article

Genetic effects influencing risk for major depressive disorder in China and Europe

Bigdeli, T. B., Ripke, S., Peterson, R. E., Trzaskowski, M., Bacanu, S-A, Abdellaoui, A., Andlauer, T. F. M., Beekman, A. T. F., Berger, K., Blackwood, D. H. R., Boomsma, D. I., Breen, G., Buttenschon, H. N., Byrne, E. M., Cichon, S., Clarke, T-K, Couvy-Duchesne, B., Craddock, N., de Geus, E. J. C., Degenhardt, F., Dunn, E. C., Edwards, A. C., Fanous, A. H., Forstner, A. J., Frank, J., Gill, M., Gordon, S. D., Grabe, H. J., Hamilton, S. P. ... Kendler, K. S. (2017). Genetic effects influencing risk for major depressive disorder in China and Europe. Translational Psychiatry, 7 (3) e1074, e1074-e1074. doi: 10.1038/tp.2016.292

Genetic effects influencing risk for major depressive disorder in China and Europe

2017

Conference Publication

Shared genetic risk factors between schizophrenia and sleep quality in a population-based cohort of Australian twins

Byrne, E. and Martin, N. (2017). Shared genetic risk factors between schizophrenia and sleep quality in a population-based cohort of Australian twins. 23rd Annual World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Toronto, Canada, 16-20 October 2017. Elsevier.

Shared genetic risk factors between schizophrenia and sleep quality in a population-based cohort of Australian twins

2016

Journal Article

Genome-wide regional heritability mapping identifies a locus within the TOX2 gene associated with major depressive disorder

Zeng, Yanni, Navarro, Pau, Shirali, Masoud, Howard, David M., Adams, Mark J., Hall, Lynsey S., Clarke, Toni-Kim, Thomson, Pippa A., Smith, Blair H., Murray, Alison, Padmanabhan, Sandosh, Hayward, Caroline, Boutin, Thibaud, MacIntyre, Donald J., Lewis, Cathryn M., Wray, Naomi R., Mehta, Divya, Penninx, Brenda W. J. H., Milaneschi, Yuri, Baune, Bernhard T., Air, Tracy, Hottenga, Jouke-Jan, Mbarek, Hamdi, Castelao, Enrique, Pistis, Giorgio, Schulze, Thomas G., Streit, Fabian, Forstner, Andreas J., Byrne, Enda M. ... McIntosh, Andrew M. (2016). Genome-wide regional heritability mapping identifies a locus within the TOX2 gene associated with major depressive disorder. Biological Psychiatry, 82 (5), 312-321. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.12.012

Genome-wide regional heritability mapping identifies a locus within the TOX2 gene associated with major depressive disorder

2016

Journal Article

Association of the polygenic risk score for schizophrenia with mortality and suicidal behavior - a Danish population-based study

Laursen, Thomas M., Trabjerg, Betina B., Mors, Ole, Borglum, Anders D., Hougaard, David M., Mattheisen, Manuel, Meier, Sandra M., Byrne, Enda M., Mortensen, Preben B., Munk-Olsen, Trine and Agerbo, Esben (2016). Association of the polygenic risk score for schizophrenia with mortality and suicidal behavior - a Danish population-based study. Schizophrenia Research, 184, 122-127. doi: 10.1016/j.schres.2016.12.001

Association of the polygenic risk score for schizophrenia with mortality and suicidal behavior - a Danish population-based study

2016

Conference Publication

The genetics of sleep behaviour

Byrne, Enda and Byrne, Enda (2016). The genetics of sleep behaviour. 46th Annual Meeting of the Behavior-Genetics-Association, Brisbane Australia, Jun 20-23, 2016. NEW YORK: ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD.

The genetics of sleep behaviour

2016

Journal Article

Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders

Otowa, T., Hek, K., Lee, M., Byrne, E. M., Mirza, S. S., Nivard, M. G., Bigdeli, T., Aggen, S. H., Adkins, D., Wolen, A., Fanous, A., Keller, M. C., Castelao, E., Kutalik, Z., Der Auwera, S. V., Homuth, G., Nauck, M., Teumer, A., Milaneschi, Y., Hottenga, J. -J., Direk, N., Hofman, A., Uitterlinden, A., Mulder, C. L., Henders, A. K., Medland, S. E., Gordon, S., Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A. F. ... Hettema, J. M. (2016). Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders. Molecular Psychiatry, 21 (10), 1391-1399. doi: 10.1038/mp.2015.197

Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders

2016

Journal Article

Genetic variants in RBFOX3 are associated with sleep latency

Amin, Najaf, Allebrandt, Karla V., van der Spek, Ashley, Müller-Myhsok, Bertram, Hek, Karin, Teder-Laving, Maris, Hayward, Caroline, Esko, Tõnu, van Mill, Josine G., Mbarek, Hamdi, Watson, Nathaniel F., Melville, Scott A., Del Greco, Fabiola M., Byrne, Enda M., Oole, Edwin, Kolcic, Ivana, Chen, Ting-hsu, Evans, Daniel S., Coresh, Josef, Vogelzangs, Nicole, Karjalainen, Juha, Willemsen, Gonneke, Gharib, Sina A., Zgaga, Lina, Mihailov, Evelin, Stone, Katie L., Campbell, Harry, Brouwer, Rutger W. W., Demirkan, Ayse ... van Duijn, Cornelia M. (2016). Genetic variants in RBFOX3 are associated with sleep latency. European Journal of Human Genetics, 24 (10), 1488-1495. doi: 10.1038/ejhg.2016.31

Genetic variants in RBFOX3 are associated with sleep latency

2016

Journal Article

Genetic correlation analysis suggests association between increased self-reported sleep duration in adults and schizophrenia and type 2 diabetes

Byrne, Enda M., Gehrman, Philip R., Trzaskowski, Maciej, Tiemeier, Henning and Pack, Allan I. (2016). Genetic correlation analysis suggests association between increased self-reported sleep duration in adults and schizophrenia and type 2 diabetes. Sleep, 39 (10), 1853-1857. doi: 10.5665/sleep.6168

Genetic correlation analysis suggests association between increased self-reported sleep duration in adults and schizophrenia and type 2 diabetes

2016

Journal Article

Erratum: Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders (vol 21, pg 1391, 2016)

Otowa, T., Hek, K., Lee, M., Byrne, E. M., Mirza, S. S., Nivard, M. G., Bigdeli, T., Aggen, S. H., Adkins, D., Wolen, A., Fanous, A., Keller, M. C., Castelao, E., Kutalik, Z., Auwera, S. V. der, Homuth, G., Nauck, M., Teumer, A., Milaneschi, Y., Hottenga, J-J, Direk, N., Hofman, A., Uitterlinden, A., Mulder, C. L., Henders, A. K., Medland, S. E., Gordon, S., Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A. F. ... Hettema, J. M. (2016). Erratum: Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders (vol 21, pg 1391, 2016). Molecular Psychiatry, 21 (10), 1485-1485. doi: 10.1038/mp.2016.11

Erratum: Meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of anxiety disorders (vol 21, pg 1391, 2016)

2016

Other Outputs

Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and maintained by 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., Consortium, GERAD ... Walters, James T. R. (2016). Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and maintained by background selection. doi: 10.1101/068593

Common schizophrenia alleles are enriched in mutation-intolerant genes and maintained by background selection

Current funding

  • 2023 - 2027
    Enabling pharmacogenomics in the Australian context: improving the accuracy of clinical utility and cost effectiveness analyses (MRFF externally administered by QIMR)
    Queensland Institute of Medical Research
    Open grant
  • 2022 - 2027
    Youth-GEMs: Gene Environment interactions in Mental health trajectories of Youth
    NHMRC European Union Collaborative Research Grants
    Open grant
  • 2022 - 2027
    Gene Environment interactions in Mental health trajectories of Youth - YOUTH-GEMs (EU grant administered by Maastricht University)
    Maastricht University
    Open grant
  • 2020 - 2025
    Australian Pharmacogenomics Diversity Project: Examining the evidence and improving the performance of pharmacogenomics in the Australian context (MRFF grant administered by QIMR Berghofer)
    Queensland Institute of Medical Research
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2019 - 2024
    Postpartum Depression: Action Towards Causes and Treatment
    Research Donation Generic
    Open grant
  • 2018 - 2022
    Postpartum Depression: Action Towards Causes and Treatment
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2015 - 2019
    Tackling heterogeneity in the etiology of major depressive disorder (NHMRC Project Grant administered by QIMR)
    Queensland Institute of Medical Research
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2017
    Discovering deep sleep genes and determining their roles for preserving cognitive functions
    NHMRC Project Grant
    Open grant
  • 2013 - 2017
    NHMRC Early Career Fellowship (CJ Martin - Overseas Biomedical Fellowship): Using new genomic technologies, statistical and computational methods to uncover the genetic aetiology of complex traits
    NHMRC Training (Postdoctoral) Fellowship
    Open grant

Availability

Dr Enda Byrne is:
Available for supervision

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Available projects

  • 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

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Gene Environment interactions in Mental health trajectories of Youth

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Genetics of Neurodevelopmental Disorders and associated comorbidities

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Allan McRae

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Genetics of childhood onset psychiatric symptoms, their persistence and comorbidity with other traits

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray

  • 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

  • Doctor Philosophy

    ELUCIDATING LIFESTYLE AND GENETIC FACTORS UNDERLYING DEPRESSION HETEROGENEITY AND TREATMENT RESPONSE

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray

Completed supervision

Enquiries

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