Characterising symptomatic substates in individuals on the psychosis continuum: a hidden Markov modelling approach.

Background: To improve early intervention and personalise treatment for individuals early on the psychosis continuum, a greater understanding of symptom dynamics is required. We address this by identifying and evaluating the movement between empirically derived attenuated psychotic symptomatic substates-clusters of symptoms that occur within individuals over time.

Methods: Data came from a 90-day daily diary study evaluating attenuated psychotic and affective symptoms.

The Impact of Metformin on Weight and Waist Circumference in Patients Treated With Clozapine: A One-Year Retrospective Cohort Study.

Background: Metformin shows potential in combating clozapine-induced weight gain (CIWG). However, current evidence for its use remains limited. Through an audit we determined the prevalence of metformin use among clozapine-treated patients and its impact on weight and waist circumference (WC).

Exploring the Implementation of Cognitive Screening in First-Episode Psychosis Settings: The CogScreen Implementation Study.

Aim: Accurate and appropriate cognitive screening can significantly enhance early psychosis care, yet no screening tools have been validated for the early psychosis population and little is known about current screening practices, experiences, or factors that may influence implementation. CogScreen is a hybrid type 1 study aiming to validate two promising screening tools with young people with first episode psychosis (primary aim) and to understand the context for implementing cognitive screening in early psychosis settings (secondary aim). This protocol outlines the implementation study, which aims to explore the current practices, acceptability, feasibility and determinants of cognitive screening in early psychosis settings from the perspective of key stakeholders.

IUPHAR themed review: The gut microbiome in schizophrenia.

Gut microbial dysbiosis or altered gut microbial consortium, in schizophrenia suggests a pathogenic role through the gut-brain axis, influencing neuroinflammatory and neurotransmitter pathways critical to psychotic, affective, and cognitive symptoms. Paradoxically, conventional psychotropic interventions may exacerbate this dysbiosis, with antipsychotics, particularly olanzapine, demonstrating profound effects on microbial architecture through disruption of bacterial phyla ratios, diminished taxonomic diversity, and attenuated short-chain fatty acid synthesis. To address these challenges, novel therapeutic strategies targeting the gut microbiome, encompassing probiotic supplementation, prebiotic compounds, faecal microbiota transplantation, and rationalised co-pharmacotherapy, show promise in attenuating antipsychotic-induced metabolic disruptions while enhancing therapeutic efficacy.

A systematic review of features and content quality of Arabic mental mHealth apps.

Introduction: Anxiety and depression are major causes of disability in Arab countries, yet resources for mental health services are insufficient. Mobile devices may improve mental health care delivery (mental m-Health), but the Arab region's mental m-Health app landscape remains under-documented. This study aims to systematically assess the features, quality, and digital safety of mental m-Health apps available in the Arab marketplace.

Development and temporal validation of a clinical prediction model of transition to psychosis in individuals at ultra-high risk in the UHR 1000+ cohort.

The concept of ultra-high risk for psychosis (UHR) has been at the forefront of psychiatric research for several decades, with the ultimate goal of preventing the onset of psychotic disorder in high-risk individuals. Orygen (Melbourne, Australia) has led a range of observational and intervention studies in this clinical population. These datasets have now been integrated into the UHR 1000+ cohort, consisting of a sample of 1,245 UHR individuals with a follow-up period ranging from 1 to 16.

A Tale of Three Spectra: Basic Symptoms in Clinical-High-Risk of Psychosis Vary Across Autism Spectrum Disorder, Schizotypal Personality Disorder, and Borderline Personality Disorder.

Background And Hypothesis: The clinical-high-risk (CHR) approach was developed to prevent psychosis through the detection of psychosis risk. CHR services are transdiagnostic in nature, therefore the appropriate management of comorbidity is a central part of care. Differential diagnosis is particularly challenging across 3 common comorbidities, schizotypal personality disorder (SPD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and borderline personality disorder (BPD).

Pharmacogenomic scores in psychiatry: systematic review of current evidence.

In the past two decades, significant progress has been made in the development of polygenic scores (PGSs). One specific application of PGSs is the development and potential use of pharmacogenomic- scores (PGx-scores) to identify patients who can benefit from a specific medication or are likely to experience side effects. This systematic review comprehensively evaluates published PGx-score studies in psychiatry and provides insights into their potential clinical use and avenues for future development.

Validating cognitive screening in young people with first-episode psychosis: The CogScreen protocol.

Aim: Cognitive impairments are a core feature of first-episode psychosis (FEP) and one of the strongest predictors of long-term psychosocial functioning. Cognition should be assessed and treated as part of routine clinical care for FEP. Cognitive screening offers the opportunity to rapidly identify and triage those in most need of cognitive support.

Long-term recreational exercise patterns in adolescents and young adults: Trajectory predictors and associations with health, mental-health, and educational outcomes.

Individual and societal factors influencing the formation of long-term recreational exercise habits during the transition from adolescence to young adulthood are not well explored. Using data from the Longitudinal Survey of Australian Youth (LSAY), a population-representative cohort study of Young People followed from age 15 to 25, we aimed to (1) model longitudinal recreational exercise trajectories from age 16 to 24, (2) examine predictors at age 15 of entering these trajectories, and (3) explore the association between the trajectories and health, mental health and educational achievement outcomes measured at the final study wave (age 25). Self-reported recreational exercise frequency data from 9353 LSAY participants were analysed using group-based trajectory modelling.

Accelerating Medicines Partnership® Schizophrenia (AMP® SCZ): Rationale and Study Design of the Largest Global Prospective Cohort Study of Clinical High Risk for Psychosis.

This article describes the rationale, aims, and methodology of the Accelerating Medicines Partnership® Schizophrenia (AMP® SCZ). This is the largest international collaboration to date that will develop algorithms to predict trajectories and outcomes of individuals at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis and to advance the development and use of novel pharmacological interventions for CHR individuals. We present a description of the participating research networks and the data processing analysis and coordination center, their processes for data harmonization across 43 sites from 13 participating countries (recruitment across North America, Australia, Europe, Asia, and South America), data flow and quality assessment processes, data analyses, and the transfer of data to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Data Archive (NDA) for use by the research community.

Combining Clinical With Cognitive or Magnetic Resonance Imaging Data for Predicting Transition to Psychosis in Ultra High-Risk Patients: Data From the PACE 400 Cohort.

Background: Multimodal modeling that combines biological and clinical data shows promise in predicting transition to psychosis in individuals who are at ultra-high risk. Individuals who transition to psychosis are known to have deficits at baseline in cognitive function and reductions in gray matter volume in multiple brain regions identified by magnetic resonance imaging.

Methods: In this study, we used Cox proportional hazards regression models to assess the additive predictive value of each modality-cognition, cortical structure information, and the neuroanatomical measure of brain age gap-to a previously developed clinical model using functioning and duration of symptoms prior to service entry as predictors in the Personal Assessment and Crisis Evaluation (PACE) 400 cohort.

Evaluating the epidemiology of clozapine-associated neutropenia among people on clozapine across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand: a retrospective cohort study.

Background: Clozapine is associated with the risk of serious neutropenia. However, this risk might decrease over time, meaning that indefinite absolute neutrophil count (ANC) monitoring could be unnecessary. We aimed to determine the epidemiology and timing of clozapine-associated neutropenia outcomes, to investigate variables that might contribute to the odds of neutropenia, and to determine risk of competing neutropenic events during clozapine treatment.

Lithium Response in Bipolar Disorder is Associated with Focal Adhesion and PI3K-Akt Networks: A Multi-omics Replication Study.

Lithium is the gold standard treatment for bipolar disorder (BD). However, its mechanism of action is incompletely understood, and prediction of treatment outcomes is limited. In our previous multi-omics study of the Pharmacogenomics of Bipolar Disorder (PGBD) sample combining transcriptomic and genomic data, we found that focal adhesion, the extracellular matrix (ECM), and PI3K-Akt signaling networks were associated with response to lithium.

Exploratory Analysis of the Effects of Celecoxib on Cognitive Function in Vortioxetine-Treated Patients With Major Depressive Disorder in the PREDDICT Study: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.

Major depressive disorder (MDD) remains difficult to treat, with many patients resistant to existing treatments or experiencing relapse. Cognitive dysfunction is associated with more severe clinical outcomes. Vortioxetine has shown efficacy in remediating depression-associated cognitive impairment.

The Effects of Dose, Practice Habits, and Objects of Focus on Digital Meditation Effectiveness and Adherence: Longitudinal Study of 280,000 Digital Meditation Sessions Across 103 Countries.

Background: The efficacy of digital meditation is well established. However, the extent to which the benefits remain after 12 weeks in real-world settings remains unknown. Additionally, findings related to dosage and practice habits have been mixed, and the studies were conducted on small and homogeneous samples and used a limited range of analytical procedures and meditation techniques.

A 12-month audit of clozapine associated myocarditis in a South Australian Local Health Network: The importance of screening and personalised titration.

Clozapine is effective in up to 50 % of patients resistant to other antipsychotics. Its use is restricted to third-line due to adverse effects which include myocarditis. Australia reports the highest incidence of clozapine-associated myocarditis (CAM) in the context of pharmacovigilance and relatively rapid titration.

Inflammation-stratified augmentation of vortioxetine with celecoxib: Results from a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial in major depressive disorder.

Low-grade inflammation is considered as a pathophysiological mechanism in a subtype of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Anti-inflammatory drugs have shown efficacy in treating MDD. However, it remains unclear how to identify suitable patients for anti-inflammatory treatment of depression.