FutureNeuro, the Research Ireland Centre for Translational Brain Science hosted by RCSI University 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‑episode psychosis.
Every year, thousands of people experience a first episode of psychosis — a significant break from reality that affects thoughts, perceptions, and a person's sense of what is real, often including hallucinations and delusions. While effective treatments exist, individual responses can vary significantly. In the absence of biological markers to guide clinical decision-making, care often relies on a process of adjustment over time, potentially delaying optimal treatment and increasing the burden on patients, families, and healthcare systems.
The project is led by Professor David Cotter, Consultant Psychiatrist at Beaumont Hospital, Professor of Molecular Psychiatry at RCSI, and Principal Investigator at FutureNeuro, alongside Dr Melanie Föcking, Dr Subash Susai, and Dr David Mongan. The research team will use proteomics, the large-scale measurement of proteins in the blood, to identify biological markers that reflect processes occurring within cells, tissues, and organs. By analyzing nearly 11,000 proteins across plasma samples from over 500 participants, including people with first‑episode psychosis and healthy controls, the study aims to assemble one of the most comprehensive proteomic datasets to date in this condition. The data will be used to identify protein patterns that could help predict how patients at the early stages of illness respond to different treatments.
The research builds on two important strands of previous work. Professor Cotter's team at RCSI has identified components of the immune system's inflammatory pathway called complement cascade proteins that are associated with symptom recovery and functional improvement in individuals experiencing first‑episode psychosis.
In parallel, large‑scale proteomics studies, including analyses of UK Biobank data, have demonstrated how protein signatures in the blood can provide insights into disease risk, prognosis, and treatment response, helping to accelerate progress toward more precise, personalised approaches to care.
This study has the potential to provide new insights into altered biological pathways in psychosis and, in doing so, to offer vital and exciting clues to new treatments. By using large-scale proteomic approaches in people experiencing first-episode psychosis, we aim to identify biological markers that reflect what is happening at a molecular level in the earliest stages of illness. These insights could help move clinical care beyond a trial-and-error approach and support more personalised, evidence-based treatment decisions at a time when early intervention can make a lasting difference to long-term outcomes."
Professor David Cotter, Consultant Psychiatrist at Beaumont Hospital, Professor of Molecular Psychiatry at RCSI
If successful, the findings could support more informed, evidence-based treatment decisions from the earliest stages of illness, reducing reliance on trial and error at a time when timely intervention can have a lasting impact.
The study reflects FutureNeuro's expanding focus on translational psychiatric research, RCSI's commitment to turning scientific discovery into patient benefit, and Ireland's national objective to strengthen collaboration between academic institutions and global industry partners.
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