The Statistical Genetics Unit (SGU), led by Professor Cathryn Lewis, is a cross-school unit, comprising 20 researchers in the Social, Genetic & Developmental Psychiatry Centre (SGDP) (Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience) and in the Department of Medical & Molecular Genetics (Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine). Our aims are to develop and apply statistical methods to identify and characterise the genetic component to common, complex disorders. We analyse local studies in psychiatric disorders, data sets such as UK Biobank, and we contribute fully to international genetics consortia. SGU group members come from diverse academic backgrounds in statistics, psychology, genetics and clinical medicine, and we work collaboratively to make the most of everyone’s expertise.

Areas of research include:

• Genome-wide association studies for major depressive disorder through the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, and follow up studies
• Pharmacogenetic studies identifying the genetic component for response to anti-depressants (AMBER)
• Dissection of the genetic overlap between mental and physical disorders, focusing on depression and type 2 diabetes
• Assessing the contribution of rare and common variation to psychiatric disorders and other traits
• Risk prediction using polygenic risk scores, the heritable component of gene expression and environmental risk factors
• UK Biobank studies to explore the predictors of healthy aging, physical activity, mental health disorders, cardiovascular disease and common cancers