Optimising current therapeutic approaches to schizophrenia: The OPTiMiSE consortium [ 2010 - 2015 ]

Research Grant

Researchers: Prof Christos Pantelis (Principal investigator)

Brief description Despite modern treatments advances (medications and psychological treatments), the prognosis of schizophrenia has only improved marginally and is individually variable. The OPTiMiSE Consortium, consisting of leading experts in schizophrenia research across Europe and a group in Australia, will commence a 5-year research program world-first in scale and scope. We will investigate the biological markers related to treatment response in over 1000 individuals with recent-onset schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a chronic disease and despite modern medication and psychological treatments the outcome is highly variable and often poor. The Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre is part of the European based OPTiMiSE Consortium, the largest ever research program evaluating why individuals with schizophrenia vary in response to different medications. We will examine what characteristics predict which drugs are most helpful to 120 individuals with first episode schizophrenia

Funding Amount $AUD 1,016,659.36

Funding Scheme NHMRC Strategic Awards

Notes Aust/EU Collaborative Research Grant