Eligibility: Only twins who previously participated in the “Resilience and vulnerability to mental health problems’” in 2021-2022.

Thank you to those members that participated in our recent study ‘Exploring genetic and environmental influences on resilience and vulnerability to mental health problems’. We are very pleased to say that the study was a big success! We received 1,911 responses, 697 twin pairs (542 monozygotic and 155 dizygotic), which will enable us to estimate the contribution of genes and the environment to risk for and resilience to a wider array of mental health problems than has previously been analysed. Analyses have commenced and we will update you on the results as soon as they become available. 

We are excited to announce that we have recently been awarded additional funding for our research and can extend upon the existing study in an important way by collecting saliva samples from each of our participants. This will allow us to confirm genetically whether you are an identical or nonidentical twin, as well as ensure our estimates of genetic influences are as accurate as possible. It will also give us the opportunity to study how DNA variation relates to risk for and resilience to mental health problems

What is involved?

We now ask you to provide a small saliva sample for genetic testing. The sample can be provided from the comfort of your own home. We will post the saliva test kit out to you and include a reply-paid return envelope for you to post it back to us. We will also ask you to provide information via an online questionnaire regarding the ancestry of your grandparents, which is important for genetic testing.

Will I be reimbursed?

There is no financial reimbursement for participating in this study. Following participation, if both you and your twin take part, we can genetically test your zygosity and confirm whether you and your sibling are monozygotic/identical or dizygotic/non-identical. We can then inform you of the results if you wish.

Who is eligible?

Twins who previously participated in our ‘Resilience and vulnerability to mental health challenges’ study and reside in Australia

Would you like to get involved?

Please note, all eligible participants will receive a study invitation directly from the Monash Brain and Behaviour Project study team (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or the study team directly (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).  

Recruitment:

February 2023 - April 2023