Overview
Background
Professor Sarah Medland (OAM, FASSA, FAHMS, PhD) is a Psychiatric and Statistical Geneticist working in Neuroimaging and Mental health genetics. Her work bridges Genetics, Psychology, Neuro-Imaging, Health Economics and applied Statistics with a focus on understanding the genetic and environmental contributions to human behaviour and disease. She chairs the genetics working group of the ENIGMA neuroimaging consortium and is an active member of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium.
Primary Appointment: Coordinator of the Mental Health Research Program and Group Leader (Psychiatric Genetics) QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute.
ORCID: 0000-0003-1382-380X
ResearcherID: C-7630-2013
Scopus Author ID: 34571085600
Email: sarah.medland@qimrberghofer.edu.au
Qualifications
2006 PhD (Psychology), University of Queensland
Dean's Award for Outstanding Research Higher Degree Thesis
2000 BA Hons (Psychology), University of Queensland, 2000 (Psychology Double Major, English Minor)
Availability
- Honorary Professor Sarah Medland is:
- Available for supervision
Fields of research
Works
Search Professor Sarah Medland’s works on UQ eSpace
2019
Journal Article
Genome-wide association study identifies 30 loci associated with bipolar disorder
Stahl, Eli A., Breen, Gerome, Forstner, Andreas J., McQuillin, Andrew, Ripke, Stephan, Trubetskoy, Vassily, Mattheisen, Manuel, Wang, Yunpeng, Coleman, Jonathan R. I., Gaspar, Héléna A., de Leeuw, Christiaan A., Steinberg, Stacy, Pavlides, Jennifer M. Whitehead, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Pers, Tune H., Holmans, Peter A., Richards, Alexander L., Abbott, Liam, Agerbo, Esben, Akil, Huda, Albani, Diego, Alliey-Rodriguez, Ney, Als, Thomas D., Anjorin, Adebayo, Antilla, Verneri, Awasthi, Swapnil, Badner, Judith A., Bækvad-Hansen, Marie ... Sklar, Pamela (2019). Genome-wide association study identifies 30 loci associated with bipolar disorder. Nature Genetics, 51 (5), 793-803. doi: 10.1038/s41588-019-0397-8
2019
Journal Article
Maternal and fetal genetic effects on birth weight and their relevance to cardio-metabolic risk factors
Warrington, Nicole M., Beaumont, Robin N., Horikoshi, Momoko, Day, Felix R., Helgeland, Øyvind, Laurin, Charles, Bacelis, Jonas, Peng, Shouneng, Hao, Ke, Feenstra, Bjarke, Wood, Andrew R., Mahajan, Anubha, Tyrrell, Jessica, Robertson, Neil R., Rayner, N. William, Qiao, Zhen, Moen, Gunn-Helen, Vaudel, Marc, Marsit, Carmen J., Chen, Jia, Nodzenski, Michael, Schnurr, Theresia M., Zafarmand, Mohammad H., Bradfield, Jonathan P., Grarup, Niels, Kooijman, Marjolein N., Li-Gao, Ruifang, Geller, Frank, Paternoster, Lavinia ... Freathy, Rachel M. (2019). Maternal and fetal genetic effects on birth weight and their relevance to cardio-metabolic risk factors. Nature Genetics, 51 (5), 804-814. doi: 10.1038/s41588-019-0403-1
2019
Journal Article
Mapping cortical and subcortical asymmetry in obsessive-compulsive disorder: Findings from the ENIGMA Consortium
Kong, Xiang-Zhen, Boedhoe, Premika S.W., Abe, Yoshinari, Alonso, Pino, Ameis, Stephanie H., Arnold, Paul D., Assogna, Francesca, Baker, Justin T., Batistuzzo, Marcelo C., Benedetti, Francesco, Beucke, Jan C., Bollettini, Irene, Bose, Anushree, Brem, Silvia, Brennan, Brian P., Buitelaar, Jan, Calvo, Rosa, Cheng, Yuqi, Cho, Kang Ik K., Dallaspezia, Sara, Denys, Damiaan, Ely, Benjamin A., Feusner, Jamie, Fitzgerald, Kate D., Fouche, Jean-Paul, Fridgeirsson, Egill A., Glahn, David C., Gruner, Patricia, Gürsel, Deniz A. ... Francks, Clyde (2019). Mapping cortical and subcortical asymmetry in obsessive-compulsive disorder: Findings from the ENIGMA Consortium. Biological Psychiatry, 87 (12), 1022-1034. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.04.022
2019
Journal Article
Assessment of bidirectional relationships between physical activity and depression among adults A 2-Sample mendelian randomization study
Choi, Karmel W., Chen, Chia-Yen, Stein, Murray B., Klimentidis, Yann C., Wang, Min-Jung, Koenen, Karestan C., Smoller, Jordan W., Wray, Naomi R., Ripke, Stephan, Mattheisen, Manuel, Trzaskowski, Maciej, Byrne, Enda M., Abdellaoui, Abdel, Adams, Mark J., Agerbo, Esben, Air, TracyM., Andlauer, Till F. M., Bacanu, Silviu-Alin, Baekvad-Hansen, Marie, Beekman, Aartjan T. F., Bigdeli, Tim B., Binder, Elisabeth B., Blackwood, Douglas H. R., Bryois, Julien, Buttenschon, Henriette N., Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Cai, Na, Castelao, Enrique, Hvarregaard, Jane ... Sullivan, Patrick F. (2019). Assessment of bidirectional relationships between physical activity and depression among adults A 2-Sample mendelian randomization study. JAMA Psychiatry, 76 (4), 399-408. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2018.4175
2019
Journal Article
Genetic markers of ADHD-related variations in intracranial volume
Klein, Marieke, Walters, Raymond K., Demontis, Ditte, Stein, Jason L., Hibar, Derrek P., Adams, Hieab H., Bralten, Janita, Mota, Nina Roth, Schachar, Russell, Sonuga-Barke, Edmund, Mattheisen, Manuel, Neale, Benjamin M., Thompson, Paul M., Medland, Sarah E., Børglum, Anders D., Faraone, Stephen V., Arias-Vasquez, Alejandro and Franke, Barbara (2019). Genetic markers of ADHD-related variations in intracranial volume. American Journal of Psychiatry, 176 (3), 228-238. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2018.18020149
2019
Journal Article
Identification of common genetic risk variants for autism spectrum disorder
Grove, Jakob, Ripke, Stephan, Als, Thomas D., Mattheisen, Manuel, Walters, Raymond K., Won, Hyejung, Pallesen, Jonatan, Agerbo, Esben, Andreassen, Ole A., Anney, Richard, Awashti, Swapnil, Belliveau, Rich, Bettella, Francesco, Buxbaum, Joseph D., Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Bækvad-Hansen, Marie, Cerrato, Felecia, Chambert, Kimberly, Christensen, Jane H., Churchhouse, Claire, Dellenvall, Karin, Demontis, Ditte, De Rubeis, Silvia, Devlin, Bernie, Djurovic, Srdjan, Dumont, Ashley L., Goldstein, Jacqueline I., Hansen, Christine S., Hauberg, Mads Engel ... Børglum, Anders D. (2019). Identification of common genetic risk variants for autism spectrum disorder. Nature Genetics, 51 (3), 431-444. doi: 10.1038/s41588-019-0344-8
2019
Journal Article
Concordance of genetic variation that increases risk for anxiety disorders and posttraumatic stress disorders and that influences their underlying neurocircuitry
van der Merwe, Celia, Jahanshad, Neda, Cheung, Josh W., Mufford, Mary, Groenewold, Nynke A., Koen, Nastassja, Ramesar, Rajkumar, Dalvie, Shareefa, ENIGMA Consortium PGC-PTSD, Knowles, James A., Hibar, Derrek P., Nievergelt, Caroline M., Koenen, Karestan C., Liberzon, Israel, Ressler, Kerry J., Medland, Sarah E., Morey, Rajendra A., Thompson, Paul M. and Stein, Dan J. (2019). Concordance of genetic variation that increases risk for anxiety disorders and posttraumatic stress disorders and that influences their underlying neurocircuitry. Journal of Affective Disorders, 245, 885-896. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2018.11.082
2019
Journal Article
Association between polygenic risk for tobacco or alcohol consumption and liability to licit and illicit substance use in young Australian adults
Chang, Lun-Hsien, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Liu, Mengzhen, Medland, Sarah E., Verhulst, Brad, Benotsch, Eric G., Hickie, Ian B., Martin, Nicholas G., Gillespie, Nathan A. and GSCAN Consortium (2019). Association between polygenic risk for tobacco or alcohol consumption and liability to licit and illicit substance use in young Australian adults. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 197, 271-279. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2019.01.015
2019
Journal Article
Social competence in parents increases children's educational attainment: Replicable genetically-mediated effects of parenting revealed by non-transmitted DNA
Bates, Timothy C., Maher, Brion S., Colodro-Conde, Lucía, Medland, Sarah E., McAloney, Kerrie, Wright, Margaret J., Hansell, Narelle K., Okbay, Aysu, Kendler, Kenneth S., Martin, Nicholas G. and Gillespie, Nathan A. (2019). Social competence in parents increases children's educational attainment: Replicable genetically-mediated effects of parenting revealed by non-transmitted DNA. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 22 (01), 1-3. doi: 10.1017/thg.2018.75
2019
Conference Publication
Schizophrenia and urban living: a study on half a million people from three countries
Conde, Lucia Colodro, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Whitfield, John, Streit, Fabian, Yengo, Loic, Trzaskowski, Maciej, de Zeeuw, Eveline, Nivard, Michel, Whiteman, David, Boomsma, Dorret, Yang, Jian, Rietschel, Marcella, McGrath, John, Medland, Sarah E. and Martin, Nick (2019). Schizophrenia and urban living: a study on half a million people from three countries. 26th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Glasgow, Scotland, 11-15 October 2018. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2018.08.059
2019
Journal Article
Half the genetic variance in vitamin D concentration is shared with skin colour and sun exposure genes
Mitchell, Brittany L., Zhu, Gu, Medland, Sarah E., Renteria, Miguel. E., Eyles, Darryl W., Grasby, Katrina L., McGrath, John J. and Martin, Nicholas G. (2019). Half the genetic variance in vitamin D concentration is shared with skin colour and sun exposure genes. Behavior Genetics, 49 (4), 386-398. doi: 10.1007/s10519-019-09954-x
2019
Journal Article
Discovery of the first genome-wide significant risk loci for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder
Demontis, Ditte, Walters, Raymond K., Martin, Joanna, Mattheisen, Manuel, Als, Thomas D., Agerbo, Esben, Baldursson, Gísli, Belliveau, Rich, Bybjerg-Grauholm, Jonas, Bækvad-Hansen, Marie, Cerrato, Felecia, Chambert, Kimberly, Churchhouse, Claire, Dumont, Ashley, Eriksson, Nicholas, Gandal, Michael, Goldstein, Jacqueline I., Grasby, Katrina L., Grove, Jakob, Gudmundsson, Olafur O., Hansen, Christine S., Hauberg, Mads Engel, Hollegaard, Mads V., Howrigan, Daniel P., Huang, Hailiang, Maller, Julian B., Martin, Alicia R., Martin, Nicholas G., Moran, Jennifer ... Kemp, John P. (2019). Discovery of the first genome-wide significant risk loci for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Nature Genetics, 51 (1), 63-75. doi: 10.1038/s41588-018-0269-7
2019
Journal Article
No alterations of brain structural asymmetry in major depressive disorder: An ENIGMA consortium analysis
De Kovel, Carolien G. F., Aftanas, Lyubomir, Aleman, André, Alexander-Bloch, Aaron F., Baune, Bernhard T., Brack, Ivan, Bülow, Robin, Filho, Geraldo Busatto, Carballedo, Angela, Connolly, Colm G., Cullen, Kathryn R., Dannlowski, Udo, Davey, Christopher G., Dima, Danai, Dohm, Katharina, Erwin-Grabner, Tracy, Frodl, Thomas, Fu, Cynthia H. Y., Hall, Geoffrey B., Glahn, David C., Godlewska, Beata, Gotlib, Ian H., Goya-Maldonado, Roberto, Grabe, Hans Jörgen, Groenewold, Nynke A., Grotegerd, Dominik, Gruber, Oliver, Harris, Mathew A., Harrison, Ben J. ... Francks, Clyde (2019). No alterations of brain structural asymmetry in major depressive disorder: An ENIGMA consortium analysis. American Journal of Psychiatry, 176 (12), 1039-1049. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2019.18101144
2019
Conference Publication
Genes within the context of development: changes in genetic trait architectures during childhood and adolescence
St Pourcain, Beate, Eaves, Lindon, Verhoef, Ellen, Shapland, Chin Yang, Ring, Susan M., Fisher, Simon E., Medland, Sarah E., Evans, David and Smith, George Davey (2019). Genes within the context of development: changes in genetic trait architectures during childhood and adolescence. 25th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Orlando, FL, United States, 13-17 October 2017. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2017.06.071
2019
Journal Article
Evidence for increased genetic risk load for major depression in patients assigned to electroconvulsive therapy
Foo, Jerome C., Streit, Fabian, Frank, Josef, Witt, Stephanie H., Treutlein, Jens, Baune, Bernhard T., Moebus, Susanne, Joeckel, Karl-Heinz, Forstner, Andreas J., Noethen, Markus M., Rietschel, Marcella, Sartorius, Alexander, Kranaster, Laura, 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., Binder, Elisabeth B., Blackwood, Douglas H. R. ... Sullivan, Patrick F. (2019). Evidence for increased genetic risk load for major depression in patients assigned to electroconvulsive therapy. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 180 (1), 35-45. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32700
2019
Conference Publication
Assessing clinical, demographic and genetic risk factors for treatment attributed suicidality in > 20,000 Australian adults on antidepressants
Campos, Adrian, Renteria, Miguel E., Byrne, Enda, Medland, Sarah E., Wray, Naomi, Hickie, Ian B. and Martin, Nick (2019). Assessing clinical, demographic and genetic risk factors for treatment attributed suicidality in > 20,000 Australian adults on antidepressants. 27th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Los Angeles, United States, 26-31 October 2019. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2019.07.212
2019
Conference Publication
Genetic risk for depression and treatment response in the Australian genetics of depression study
Byrne, Enda, Medland, Sarah E., Hickie, Ian, Martin, Nicholas G. and Wray, Naomi (2019). Genetic risk for depression and treatment response in the Australian genetics of depression study. 27th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Los Angeles, CA, United States, 26-31 October 2019. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Elsevier . doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2019.07.109
2019
Conference Publication
A direct test of the diathesis-stress model for depression
Conde, Lucia Colodro, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Zhu, Gu, Coventry, William, Byrne, Enda, Gordon, Scott, Wright, Margaret, Montgomery, Grant, Madden, Pamela, Ripke, Stephan, Eaves, Lindon, Heath, Andrew, Wray, Naomi, Medland, Sarah E. and Martin, Nick (2019). A direct test of the diathesis-stress model for depression. 25th World Congress of Psychiatric Genetics (WCPG), Orlando, FL United States, 13-17 October 2017. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2017.08.045
2019
Journal Article
Twenty-Five and Up (25Up) Study: A New Wave of the Brisbane Longitudinal Twin Study
Mitchell, Brittany L., Campos, Adrian I., Rentería, Miguel E., Parker, Richard, Sullivan, Lenore, McAloney, Kerrie, Couvy-Duchesne, Baptiste, Medland, Sarah E., Gillespie, Nathan A., Scott, Jan, Zietsch, Brendan P., Lind, Penelope A., Martin, Nicholas G. and Hickie, Ian B. (2019). Twenty-Five and Up (25Up) Study: A New Wave of the Brisbane Longitudinal Twin Study. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 22 (03) PII S1832427419000276, 154-163. doi: 10.1017/thg.2019.27
2019
Conference Publication
Educational attainment polygenic risk scores predict surface area of cortical regions important for language and memory
Mitchell, Brittany, Partida, Gabriel Cuellar, Grasby, Katrina, Strike, Lachlan, Thompson, Paul, Medland, Sarah, Martin, Nicholas, Wright, Margaret and Renteria, Miguel (2019). Educational attainment polygenic risk scores predict surface area of cortical regions important for language and memory. 49th Annual Meeting of the Behavior Genetics Association (BGA), Stockholm, Sweden, 26-29 June, 2019. New York, NY, United States: Springer New York LLC. doi: 10.1007/s10519-019-09973-8
Supervision
Availability
- Honorary Professor Sarah Medland is:
- Available for supervision
Before you email them, read our advice on how to contact a supervisor.
Supervision history
Current supervision
-
Doctor Philosophy
Genetic architecture of differences in symptomatology and treatment response in major depressive disorder
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nick Martin, Associate Professor Miguel Rentería
-
Doctor Philosophy
Unveiling the Complexities of Psychotic Disorders: Enhancing Treatment Safety and Understanding Heterogeneity Through Biomarkers, Genetic Analysis, and Multimodal Data Integration
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Dan Siskind
-
Doctor Philosophy
Genetic and environmental risk factors influencing mood disorders
Principal Advisor
Completed supervision
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2022
Doctor Philosophy
Exploring the influence of genetics and heritability on the heterogeneity of ADHD presentations
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray
-
2021
Doctor Philosophy
Motivated cognition and genetics: A psychological perspective on public understanding of behaviour genetics
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Fiona Barlow, Dr Lucia Colodro-Conde
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2019
Doctor Philosophy
Evaluation of the obesity paradox in diabetes: a longitudinal case control study
Principal Advisor
-
2016
Doctor Philosophy
Forensically Relevant Applications of Genome-Wide Association Studies
Principal Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nick Martin
-
2023
Doctor Philosophy
Embracing Complexity in Psychiatric Genetics: Investigating Heterogeneity and Pleiotropy in Depression and Major Psychiatric Disorders
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Dr Enda Byrne
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2020
Doctor Philosophy
Genetic influences on substance use behaviour, substance use disorders and psychiatric disorders
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Naomi Wray, Professor Nick Martin, Dr Lucia Colodro-Conde
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2014
Doctor Philosophy
Mapping the Genetic Architecture of Subcortical Brain Anatomy
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nick Martin
-
2012
Doctor Philosophy
The genetics of complex human behaviour: Cannabis use, personality, sexuality and mating
Associate Advisor
Other advisors: Professor Nick Martin
Media
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