Translating the Transcriptome: A Connectomics Approach for Gene-Network Mapping and Clinical Application.

Gene expression shapes the brain's functional connectome, yet it is unclear whether genes linked to the same disorder converge on shared networks. We introduce gene network mapping-a framework combining spatial transcriptomics with normative functional connectivity to identify networks associated with gene expression. By generating -network maps, we captured distributed connectivity patterns for individual genes.

Altered striatal functional gradients in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Background: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with functional alterations in how the striatum interacts with the rest of the brain. However, the characterization of these changes in OCD is incomplete. Mapping functional striatal gradients provides a new opportunity to fill this knowledge gap.

Altered striatal functional gradients in obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Background: Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is associated with functional alterations in how the striatum interacts with the rest of the brain. However, the characterization of these changes in OCD is incomplete. Mapping functional striatal gradients provides a new opportunity to fill this knowledge gap.

Convergent large-scale network and local vulnerabilities underlie brain atrophy across Parkinson's disease stages: a worldwide ENIGMA study.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is associated with extensive structural brain changes. Recent work has proposed that the spatial pattern of disease pathology is shaped by both network spread and local vulnerability. However, only few studies assessed these biological frameworks in large patient samples across disease stages.

Neuroimaging-based data-driven subtypes of spatiotemporal atrophy due to Parkinson's disease.

Parkinson's disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease. Despite this, there are no robust biomarkers to predict progression, and understanding of disease mechanisms is limited. We used the Subtype and Stage Inference algorithm to characterize Parkinson's disease heterogeneity in terms of spatiotemporal subtypes of macroscopic atrophy detectable on T1-weighted MRI-a successful approach used in other neurodegenerative diseases.

Clinical and Neurophysiological Effects of Robotically Delivered fMRI-Guided Personalized Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Therapy for Depression.

Introduction: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is an established treatment for refractory major depressive disorder (MDD), but treatment outcomes vary substantially from person to person. Recent evidence suggests that incorporating neuroimaging-based targeting may help improve clinical outcomes. Here, we report the initial clinical outcomes of our open-label fMRI-personalized treatment protocol from the Queensland Neurostimulation Centre.

Subthalamic Deep Brain Stimulation: Mapping Non-Motor Outcomes to Structural Connections.

In Parkinson's Disease (PD), deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN-DBS) reliably improves motor symptoms, and the circuits mediating these effects have largely been identified. However, non-motor outcomes are more variable, and it remains unclear which specific brain circuits need to be modulated or avoided to improve them. Since numerous non-motor symptoms potentially respond to DBS, it is challenging to independently identify the circuits mediating each one of them.

The interplay of age, gender and amyloid on brain and cognition in mid-life and older adults.

Deficits in memory are seen as a canonical sign of aging and a prodrome to dementia in older adults. However, our understanding of age-related cognition and brain morphology occurring throughout a broader spectrum of adulthood remains limited. We quantified the relationship between cognitive function and brain morphology (sulcal width, SW) using three cross-sectional observational datasets (PISA, AIBL, ADNI) from mid-life to older adulthood, assessing the influence of age, sex, amyloid (Aβ) and genetic risk for dementia.

Markers of positive affect and brain state synchrony discriminate melancholic from non-melancholic depression using naturalistic stimuli.

Melancholia has been proposed as a qualitatively distinct depressive subtype associated with a characteristic symptom profile (psychomotor retardation, profound anhedonia) and a better response to biological therapies. Existing work has suggested that individuals with melancholia are blunted in their display of positive emotions and differ in their neural response to emotionally evocative stimuli. Here, we unify these brain and behavioural findings amongst a carefully phenotyped group of seventy depressed participants, drawn from an established Australian database (the Australian Genetics of Depression Study) and further enriched for melancholia (high ratings of psychomotor retardation and anhedonia).

Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol in Tourette Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Tourette syndrome is characterized by chronic motor and vocal tics. There is preliminary evidence of benefit from cannabis products containing Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and that coadministration of cannabidiol (CBD) improves the side-effect profile and safety. METHODS: In this double-blind, crossover trial, participants with severe Tourette syndrome were randomly assigned to a 6-week treatment period with escalating doses of an oral oil containing 5 mg/ml of THC and 5 mg/ml of CBD, followed by a 6-week course of placebo, or vice versa, separated by a 4-week washout period.

Cerebellar Volume and Disease Staging in Parkinson's Disease: An ENIGMA-PD Study.

Background: Increasing evidence points to a pathophysiological role for the cerebellum in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, regional cerebellar changes associated with motor and non-motor functioning remain to be elucidated.

Objective: To quantify cross-sectional regional cerebellar lobule volumes using three dimensional T1-weighted anatomical brain magnetic resonance imaging from the global ENIGMA-PD working group.

Caregiver Burden in Parkinson Disease: A Scoping Review of the Literature from 2017-2022.

Caregiver burden is a term that refers to the adverse effect of caregiving on the physical, emotional, social, spiritual, and financial well-being of the caregiver. Caregiver burden is associated with providing care to an individual with a chronic illness or disability, and the unique symptoms of Parkinson disease (PD) can amplify a patient's needs and reliance on others, leading to adverse outcomes for patients and their caregivers. In this scoping review of the literature from January 2017 through April 2022 that included 114 studies, we provide an updated, evidence-based summary of patient and caregiver-related factors that contribute to caregiver burden in PD.

The Role of Apathy in Spontaneous Verbal and Nonverbal Behaviors: A Transdiagnostic Pilot Study in Neurodegeneration.

Background: Apathy, characterized by a quantifiable reduction in motivation or goal-directed behavior, is a multidimensional syndrome that has been observed across many neurodegenerative diseases.

Objective: To develop a novel task measuring spontaneous action initiation (ie, a nonverbal equivalent to spontaneous speech tasks) and to investigate the association between apathy and executive functions such as the voluntary initiation of speech and actions and energization (ie, ability to initiate and sustain a response).

Method: We compared the energization and executive functioning performance of 10 individuals with neurodegenerative disease and clinically significant apathy with that of age-matched healthy controls (HC).

Evaluation of Brain-Body Health in Individuals With Common Neuropsychiatric Disorders.

Importance: Physical health and chronic medical comorbidities are underestimated, inadequately treated, and often overlooked in psychiatry. A multiorgan, systemwide characterization of brain and body health in neuropsychiatric disorders may enable systematic evaluation of brain-body health status in patients and potentially identify new therapeutic targets.

Objective: To evaluate the health status of the brain and 7 body systems across common neuropsychiatric disorders.

Clinical recommendations for the care of people with treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder when undergoing deep brain stimulation.

Deep brain stimulation is an emerging therapy for treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder patients. Yet, accessibility is limited, treatment protocols are heterogeneous and there is no guideline or consensus on the best practices. Here, we combine evidence from scientific investigations, expert opinions and our clinical expertise to propose several clinical recommendations from the pre-operative, surgical and post-operative phases of deep brain stimulation care for treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder patients.

Australian Parkinson's Genetics Study (APGS): pilot (n=1532).

Purpose: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder associated with progressive disability. While the precise aetiology is unknown, there is evidence of significant genetic and environmental influences on individual risk. The Australian Parkinson's Genetics Study seeks to study genetic and patient-reported data from a large cohort of individuals with PD in Australia to understand the sociodemographic, genetic and environmental basis of PD susceptibility, symptoms and progression.

Connectomic Deep Brain Stimulation for Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is among the most disabling psychiatric disorders. Although deep brain stimulation is considered an effective treatment, its use in clinical practice is not fully established. This is, at least in part, due to ambiguity about the best suited target and insufficient knowledge about underlying mechanisms.

Deep brain stimulation for treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder should be an accepted therapy in Australia.

Deep brain stimulation has shown promise for the treatment of severe, treatment-refractory obsessive-compulsive disorder. With the recent publication of the first Australian, randomised, sham-controlled trial of deep brain stimulation for obsessive-compulsive disorder, there are now four placebo-controlled trials demonstrating the efficacy of this therapy. Together with recent data identifying a biological substrate of effective stimulation that can predict response and that has been successfully reproduced, studies comparing and finding equivalent efficacy among different targets, as well as recent, large, open trials supporting the long-term effectiveness of deep brain stimulation, we argue that this should now be considered an accepted therapy for a select group of patients in the Australasian setting.

Neuropsychiatric effects of subthalamic deep brain stimulation.

The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is a subcortical, glutamatergic, excitatory, relay nucleus that increases the inhibitory drive of the basal ganglia and suppresses action. It is of central relevance to the neuropsychological construct of inhibition, as well as the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the STN (STN-DBS) is an established surgical treatment for PD that can be complicated by adverse neuropsychiatric side effects, most commonly characterized by impulsivity and mood elevation, although depression, anxiety, apathy, and cognitive changes have also been reported.

A randomised, double-blind, sham-controlled trial of deep brain stimulation of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis for treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder.

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a promising treatment for severe, treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Here, nine participants (four females, mean age 47.9 ± 10.