Investigating the molecular basis of concussion using whole exome sequencing and bioinformatics

This thesis investigated the genetic influences of concussion development and outcomes. People react differently to similar head trauma; some may recover within a few weeks and some may develop long term symptoms for months or years. This thesis used a combination of genetic sequencing methods and machine learning to create pilot models for predicting these outcomes. The long-term goal of this work will allow for personalised treatments in the wake of concussion, tailored rest recommendations, as well as potential new drugs to help with management

Mental wellbeing of students from refugee and migrant backgrounds: The mediating role of resilience

An increasing number of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) students from migrant and refugee backgrounds are enrolling in schools in the West. These students are exposed to challenges that may influence their mental health and wellbeing. At the same time, schools tend to play a critical role in promoting these students’ social relatedness through a sense of support, connectedness, and an adaptation to the new setting. The aim of the study was to assess the role of social relatedness in promoting mental wellbeing. Resilience was hypothesized as a facilitator process enhancing the relationship between social relatedness and the mental wellbeing of CALD students. Recently arrived CALD students (N= 221) enrolled at a specialised high school in Australia completed a battery of measures assessing: social support, school connectedness, acculturation, resilience, and mental wellbeing. A series of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the three social relatedness factors (social support, school connectedness, and acculturation) were related to mental wellbeing. However, their variance decreased when resilience was added. Mediation analyses indicated that resilience was a partial mediator for the relationship between each of the social relatedness elements and mental wellbeing. Resilience was also shown to play a significant role in the relationship between social relatedness and mental wellbeing. School-based mental health services for CALD students from migrant and refugee backgrounds may benefit by further understanding the unique factors that influence the mental wellbeing of children

BDNF variants may modulate long-term visual memory performance in a healthy cohort

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is involved in numerous cognitive functions including learning and memory. BDNF plays an important role in synaptic plasticity in humans and rats with BDNF shown to be essential for the formation of long-term memories. We previously identified a significant association between the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism (rs6265) and long-term visual memory (p-value = 0.003) in a small cohort (n = 181) comprised of healthy individuals who had been phenotyped for various aspects of memory function. In this study, we have extended the cohort to 597 individuals and examined multiple genetic variants across both the BDNF and BDNF-AS genes for association with visual memory performance as assessed by the Wechsler Memory Scale-Fourth Edition subtests Visual Reproduction I and II (VR I and II). VR I assesses immediate visual memory, whereas VR II assesses long-term visual memory. Genetic association analyses were performed for 34 single nucleotide polymorphisms genotyped on Illumina OmniExpress BeadChip arrays with the immediate and long-term visual memory phenotypes. While none of the BDNF and BDNF-AS variants were shown to be significant for immediate visual memory, we found 10 variants (including the Val66Met polymorphism (p-value = 0.006)) that were nominally associated, and three variants (two variants in BDNF and one variant in the BDNF-AS locus) that were significantly associated with long-term visual memory. Our data therefore suggests a potential role for BDNF, and its anti-sense transcript BDNF-AS, in long-term visual memory performance