Psychiatric disease link to motor neurone

Researchers in Trinity College Dublin have found a link between the genetics of some forms of motor neurone disease (MND) and a range of psychiatric diseases.

Thanks to almost 20 years of tracking people with the lethal disease, the team was able to compile a comprehensive study of the families of people with MND and compare it to the families of those who do not.

Ahead of her inaugural lecture last night as Ireland’s first professor of neurology, Orla Hardiman said: “We looked at the frequency of other conditions within those families and, to our surprise, we found that the families of people with MND have a much higher rate of some psychiatric diseases. That suggests the genes that lead to these psychiatric traits of the personality, when they are a little bit larger than normal, can give trouble. Those genes obviously have some effect on the risk of neuro-degeneration as well. That allows us to get a handle on how the brain works.”

She said the psychiatric conditions she was referring to were schizophrenia-like illnesses. She also said there was a much higher rate of suicide in family members of people with MND.

“We are not quite sure why that is but we think it might be something to do with impulse dyscontrol, people having more difficulty controlling their impulses,” said Prof Hardiman.

She also revealed the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association has given a portion of the almost €1.5m raised through ice bucket challenges here to research.