FutureNeuro, the Irish Research Center for Translational Brain Sciences hosted by the RCSI School of Medicine and Health Sciences, has launched a new proteomics study aimed at identifying biological markers that could support more personalized treatment for people experiencing first-onset psychosis.
Every year, thousands of people experience their first episode of psychosis. It is a significant departure from reality that affects thinking, perception, and a person’s sense of what is real, and often includes hallucinations and delusions. Although effective treatments exist, individual responses can vary widely. In the absence of biological markers to guide clinical decision-making, treatment often relies on processes that adjust over time, potentially delaying optimal treatment and increasing burden on patients, families, and healthcare systems.
The project is being led by Professor David Cotter, Consultant Psychiatrist at Beaumont Hospital, Professor of Molecular Psychiatry at RCSI and Principal Investigator at FutureNeuro, together with Dr Melanie Fecking, Dr Subhash Soosai and Dr David Mongan. The research team plans to use proteomics, the large-scale measurement of proteins in the blood, to identify biological markers that reflect processes occurring within cells, tissues, and organs. The study aims to collect one of the most comprehensive proteomics data sets to date on this condition by analyzing approximately 11,000 proteins across plasma samples from more than 500 participants, including newly diagnosed psychotic patients and healthy controls. This data is used to identify protein patterns that can help predict how patients in the early stages of the disease will respond to different treatments.
This study builds on two key elements of previous research. Professor Cotter’s team at RCSI has identified components of the immune system’s inflammatory pathway, called complement cascade proteins, that are associated with symptomatic recovery and improved function in individuals who have experienced a first-episode psychosis.
In parallel, large-scale proteomics research, including analysis of data from UK Biobank, is demonstrating how the signature of proteins in the blood can provide insights into disease risk, prognosis and treatment response, helping to accelerate progress towards more precise and personalized approaches to care.
This study may provide new insights into altered biological pathways in psychosis and, in doing so, may provide important and exciting clues to new treatments. By using a large-scale proteomics approach in people experiencing first-episode psychosis, we aim to identify biological markers that reflect what is happening at the molecular level during the early stages of the disease. These insights may help move clinical care beyond trial-and-error approaches and support more individualized, evidence-based treatment decisions, now that early intervention can make a lasting difference in long-term outcomes. ”
Professor David Cotter, Consultant Psychiatrist at Beaumont Hospital and Professor of Molecular Psychiatry at RCSI
If successful, the findings could support more informed, evidence-based treatment decisions from the earliest stages of the disease, reducing reliance on trial and error, when timely intervention can have a lasting impact.
The research reflects FutureNeuro’s expanded focus on translational psychiatry research, RCSI’s commitment to turning scientific discoveries into patient benefit, and Ireland’s national ambition to strengthen collaboration between academic institutions and global industry partners.
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RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
