The second season of the Piece of Mind podcast sees more researchers and experts by lived experience come together to discuss a variety of mental health and neuroscience topics.
Episode themes include:
- 22q11.2 deletion syndrome
- autism
- medication and treatment resistant schizophrenia
- finding and losing schizophrenia
Subscribe on iTunes or Spotify, or listen to our episodes below.
– Episode 6: 22q11.2 deletion syndrome
22q11.2 deletion syndrome, or 22q for short, is a genetic syndrome affecting between one in 2,000 and one in 4,000 people.
There are a wide range of health issues associated with the syndrome, such as heart conditions and immune problems, palatal defects and speech delays. It can also cause developmental problems and learning disabilities, and increased risk of a range of mental health problems, including schizophrenia, ADHD and depression.
To tell us more about 22q, we’re joined by Professor Marianne van den Bree, a Principal Investigator at Cardiff University’s Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics.
We also get a parent perspective from Katie and Jon, whose daughter Ivy was diagnosed with 22q in 2017.
Help with 22q research at Cardiff University
Please contact the Rare Genetic Condition research programme if you are interested finding out more in taking part in their latest studies: CNVResearch@cardiff.ac.uk
Links and resources
– Minisode: Clozapine, neutropenia and treatment-resistant schizophrenia
We’re delighted to be joined by Dr Sophie Legge and Dr Antonio Pardinas for this minisode to discuss their latest research study.
Sophie, Antonio and colleagues at Cardiff University’s Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics examined genetic data from more than 500 people of African descent taking clozapine, an anti-psychotic medication prescribed to people with treatment resistant schizophrenia.
Clozapine is currently the most effective treatment for people with treatment-resistant schizophrenia, but it can cause a rare side effect called neutropenia. In the most extreme cases, this can develop into agranulocytosis; a severe and potentially life-threatening condition.
These side-effects are characterised by lower neutrophil levels, a type of white blood cell, and these lower levels appear to be more common in people of African descent. The team were interested in learning whether genetic factors were at play, and in this minisode Sophie and Antonio explain what they found and how their results could help improve the management of clozapine treatment.
Links and resources
- Read a summary of the paper and its findings
- Access the full paper
- Information on clozapine
- Information on schizophrenia
– Episode 7: Autism
Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how people perceive the world and interact with others. There are around 700,000 autistic people in the UK, and while it is usually diagnosed in childhood, some autistic people grow up without their condition being recognised until later in life.
In this episode, we’re joined by Kat Williams who was diagnosed as autistic when she was 32. In this episode she shares her experience of growing up without a diagnosis, parenting an autistic child and the impact of labels like ‘high functioning’.
She’s joined by Professor Jeremy Hall, co-director of Cardiff University’s Neuroscience and Mental Health Innovation Institute. He discusses some of the latest research into autism and how autistic people are more likely to experience mental health problems like depression and anxiety.
Research papers mentioned during this episode
- Autism spectrum disorder diagnosis in adults: phenotype and genotype findings from a clinically derived cohort, referenced as a study led by Dr Jack Underwood.
Links and resources
- Engage to Change
- The National Autistic Society
- ASD Info Wales
- Welsh Government’s ASD delivery plan
- Cerebration of Kat (Kat’s blog)
– Episode 8: Finding and losing schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a contentious diagnosis and source of often heated debate across the various professions and stakeholders associated with mental health. Some argue that it has outlasted its usefulness as a single diagnosis and should instead be viewed as the extreme end of a ‘psychosis spectrum disorder’.
To unpick the issues, we’re delighted to be joined by award-winning author Nathan Filer, who is in conversation with Professor James Walters, deputy director at NCMH to discuss his latest book – The Heartland: Finding and Losing Schizophrenia.
This episode was recorded live at Bigmoose Coffee Co. in Cardiff. They’re a fantastic bunch and do great work in the community, so if you’re in town make sure you pop in for a coffee and try some of their amazing cakes.