The Schizophrenia Research Institute

The Institute pioneered brain atlasing techniques in Australia, and champions multi-disciplinary integrated investigations – such as the 2008 study which found that reductions of grey matter in the auditory cortex of schizophrenia patients is linked to impaired auditory processing.

The Schizophrenia Research Institute is the only national medical research institute solely dedicated to discovering the ways to prevent and cure schizophrenia. Established in 1996 as Australia’s first virtual medical research Institute, the organisation conducts and supports schizophrenia research in hospitals, universities and research institutes across the country and internationally. With approximately 60 employees and 140 scientific affiliates, the Institute drives a proactive research agenda; has invested over $25 million, and has had numerous successes to date.

Originally known as the Neuroscience Institute of Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders (NISAD), the Institute’s name was changed to the Schizophrenia Research Institute in 2007. The Institute is NHMRC accredited and is funded by government grants (NSW Health & NHMRC) and corporate and private donations. As a registered charity throughout Australia the Institute receives donations via its website www.schizophreniaresearch.org.au and telephone (02) 9295 8688, and via fundraising events and promotions.

Shining a light on schizophrenia

The nationwide collaboration of the Australian Schizophrenia Research Bank includes research groups in Brisbane, Sydney, Newcastle, Melbourne, Orange and Perth.

Research suggests that schizophrenia may be a developmental disorder resulting from alterations in the usual maturing process of the nervous system. Although progress has been made toward better understanding and treatment of schizophrenia, continued investigation is urgently needed. Research is gradually leading to new and safer medications and to unraveling the complex causes of the disease. Sharing in this aim, the Institute supports schizophrenia-related research in a wide range of scientific domains, and has developed a number of new infrastructure and research program initiatives, initially in New South Wales, but increasingly on a national scale.

In addition to supporting a multi-disciplinary program of schizophrenia research across the Institute’s research network in the areas of developmental neurobiology and cognitive neuroscience, the Institute has developed infrastructure facilities such as a brain tissue donor program, and a register of research volunteers.

The Australian Schizophrenia Research Bank

Launched in 2007, the Australian Schizophrenia Research Bank (ASRB) is the largest schizophrenia research project ever undertaken in Australia. This 5-year project, supported by NHMRC, aims to collect and link genetic, clinical, neuropsychological and brain imaging information from 2,000 individuals with schizophrenia and 2,000 healthy controls. Cross-referenced data from this unique resource will be particularly valuable in supporting meaningful schizophrenia-
related studies conducted by scientists who do not have access to clinical populations.

The Schizophrenia Research Laboratory
New treatment now in clinical trial

Professor Cyndi Shannon Weickert and her team at the Schizophrenia Research Laboratory.

In 2006 the Institute was instrumental in establishing Australia’s first university Chair of schizophrenia research, and in attracting Professor Cyndi Shannon Weickert to become its founding incumbent*. Professor Shannon Weickert opened her Schizophrenia Research Laboratory in 2007, and is currently leading the Institute’s first clinical drug trial – following her discovery that an oestrogen receptor involved in brain development is dysfunctional in schizophrenia.  The new oestrogen treatment now under trial may help redress some of the imbalances in brain function, reducing some ‘negative’ symptoms of the illness such as poor performance in language and memory.

Schizophrenia risk and population health

Professor Vaughan Carr and Head of UNSW’s School of Psychiatry Scienta Professor Philip Mitchell celebrate a big step forward in Australian schizophrenia research.

A further Chair was established in May 2009 when the Institute’s CEO Professor Vaughan Carr was appointed Chair in Schizophrenia Epidemiology and Population Health. In this role, Professor Carr will work closely with health and education departments to set up record linkage through databases – aiming to pinpoint risk factors of schizophrenia and to track health outcomes across communities. Also focusing on risk factors, the Institute’s clinical and cognitive scientists are investigating ways to detect high-risk young people who subsequently go on to develop schizophrenia. Early intervention treatment in such high-risk children could protect many from long-term mental illness.