Identifying Causal Risk Factors and Treatments for Depression, Anxiety and ADHD in Young People
This MRC-funded project uses advanced genetic and longitudinal methods to uncover the causes of depression, anxiety and ADHD in young people and to identify potential new treatment targets.
Depression, anxiety and ADHD are common conditions that emerge during childhood and adolescence, profoundly affecting well-being, education and long-term outcomes. Understanding their causes is essential for developing effective interventions.
This MRC-funded collaboration between UCL, the University of Bristol and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health applies cutting-edge Mendelian randomization and family-based genetic methods to reveal causal pathways and potential drug targets that could improve mental health outcomes for young people.
The project integrates data from three major longitudinal studies — the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort (MoBa), the Millennium Cohort Study (MCS) and Born in Bradford (BiB) — covering over 90,000 genotyped children. These data enable unparalleled insights into when mental health difficulties first arise, how family factors influence them, and how existing drugs might be repurposed to improve outcomes.
This research will provide reliable causal evidence to inform prevention and treatment strategies, advance understanding of mental health development, and train the next generation of researchers in genetic causal inference.
Key Aims
- Identify the earliest biological and environmental risk factors for depression, anxiety and ADHD.
- Separate genetic, familial and social influences using within-family Mendelian randomization.
- Evaluate existing and potential drug targets through drug-target Mendelian randomization.
- Promote open science through reproducible code, data pipelines and methods training.
Research Team
Principal Investigator: Professor Neil M Davies
Co-Investigators:
- Professor David Bann
- Professor Jean-Baptiste Pingault
- Professor Argyris Stringaris
- Dr Isabella Badini
- Professors Gibran Hemani, Laura Howe and Dr Eleanor Sanderson – MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol
- Professor Alexandra Havdahl – Norwegian Institute of Public Health
Funding
Funded by the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) under the UK–Norway partnership scheme, project UKRI1510.
