Mental disorders are leading causes of disability, absence from work and premature retirement in Europe. While magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) facilities are broadly available and a vast research literature exists, few neuroimaging applications
have reached clinical practice in psychiatry. A major problem is that mental illnesses are currently diagnosed as discrete
entities defined clinically. Instead, recent results show that mental disorders are best understood as quantitative alterations
in neural systems relevant across traditional diagnostic boundaries that reflect individual, genetic and environmental risk
factors. In the IMAGEMEND consortium, we aim to discover these systems to identify the patient characteristics most
relevant for treatment, derive biomarkers and decision rules from this systems-level dimensional account, and systematically
validate biomarker panels in patient, high-risk and epidemiological samples to produce automated imaging-based diagnostic
and predictive tests tailored for wide distribution throughout Europe in standard clinical settings. Focusing on schizophrenia,
bipolar disorder and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, we have assembled Europe’s largest dataset combining
neuroimaging, genetic, environmental, cognitive and clinical information on approximately 13000 participants, and have
recruited international replication datasets of more than 30000 people. This unique resource will be processed using a new
generation of multivariate statistical analysis to optimize existing imaging technology for the benefit of patients. We will also
develop new imaging technology to enable the direct imaging-based therapeutic modification of neural circuits through rapid
real-time MRI. Our deliverables will promote personalized treatment through more accurate patient stratification, allow
diagnoses at the pre-symptomatic stage for early intervention and prevention, and improve prediction of treatment response
and disease progression. |