Investigations Into The Onset And Persistence Of Severe Health Anxiety (hypochondriasis), And The Development Of Innovative Psychological Interventions
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$313,096.00
Summary
This program of research will investigate the cognitive, emotional, and behavioural factors that are involved in the onset and persistence of severe health anxiety (hypochondriasis). It will also test the effectiveness of innovative psychological interventions for the disorder.
Association Between Sirtuin Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms And Functional Markers Of Brain Health In Ageing
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$311,860.00
Summary
Sirtuins are histone deacetylases that have been reported to play a pivotal role in energy expenditure, mitochondrial function and pathogenesis of metabolic diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders and Alzheimer’s disease in particular. In this study, we will focus on the genes encoding sirtuin families, and examined the association between single nucleotide polymorphisms within genes encoding sirtuin families and functional markers for brain health.
Cognitive Factors In Youth That Increase Vulnerability To Social Phobia
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$313,976.00
Summary
I am a psychologist focused on identifying the patterns of thinking of young people that make them vulnerable to developing a chronic and debilitating anxiety disorder known as social phobia. To do this, I will measure a range of thinking patterns of a sample of youth over time, and see which patterns are characteristic of those individuals who do develop social phobia. By identifying these particular thinking patterns, we will be able to identify youth who need preventative interventions.
Language Deficits And Cognitive Dysfunction In Motor Neuron Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$263,513.00
Summary
Motor neuron disease (MND) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are fatal degenerative brain diseases that overlap clinically and pathologically. Patients with either disease can develop a combination of motor and cognitive deficits (known as FTD-MND). Recent studies suggest that FTD-MND is more common in familial MND. This project will investigate language disturbance – a prominent feature of FTD – in MND patients to establish whether such impairment predicts the development of FTD-MND.
Evaluation Of A Case Formulation Interview To Guide Treatment Of Anxious Children
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$153,054.00
Summary
Anxiety disorders are common in childhood. Current treatments result in improvement for 60% of children however they are not widely used in the community. This project will evaluate a treatment planning interview designed to improve the match between a child’s difficulties and the treatment that they are offered. This will increase the number of children who benefit from treatment, encourage widespread and save money by reducing treatment time and decreasing risk of future problems.