The pharmacogGENEtics in Youth Depression (GENE-YD) study for personalizing antidepressant pharmacotherapy for young Western Australians - A feasibility study.
16 affiliations
- 1Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science, Nedlands, WA, Australia. [email protected].
- 2School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia. [email protected].
- 3Perron Institute for Neurological and Translational Science, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
- 4School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
- 5Division of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia.
- 6Medical School, Curtin University, Bentley, WA, Australia.
- 7North Metropolitan Health Service, Western Australian Department of Health, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
- 8Rural Clinical School, School of Medicine, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia.
- 9Suicide Prevention and Resilience Research Centre, School of Psychological Science, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
- 10Gene S Pty Ltd, Perth, WA, Australia.
- 11Insitute for Respiratory Health, Nedlands, WA, Australia.
- 12School of Clinical Medicine, University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW, Australia.
- 13School of Human Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
- 14Personalised Medicine Centre, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA, Australia.
- 15Division of Neurology, Duke University Medical Centre, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
- 16School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
Abstract
Pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing to guide antidepressant prescribing is becoming increasingly available. However, its uptake into routine psychiatric practice for young people remains limited due to insufficient youth-specific evidence and uncertainty regarding optimal trial design and outcome selection. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a rigorous triple-blind randomized controlled trial to examine PGx-guided antidepressant treatment compared with treatment-as-usual (TAU) in young Australians with depression. The pharmacoGENEtics in Youth Depression (GENE-YD) study recruited young people aged 16-24 years old with major depressive disorder over 13 months, allocating 1:1 to PGx-Guided treatment or TAU. Depressive symptoms and quality-of-life outcomes were measured using rater-administered measures and self-report questionnaires at Baseline and at 6- and 12-weeks follow-up. Feasibility outcomes included recruitment, adherence, attrition, participant satisfaction, and protocol fidelity. Of 73 individuals screened, 55 were eligible and randomized. Baseline data were collected from 39 participants, with 38 completing assessments through Week 12. Adherence to the study protocol and assessment schedule was high, attrition was low, and participant satisfaction was strong. Clinically meaningful improvements were observed, with the PGx-Guided group showing greater reductions in depressive symptom severity, higher rates of treatment response and remission, and improved quality-of-life outcomes compared with TAU. The GENE-YD Study demonstrated that a triple-blind PGx-guided antidepressant trial is feasible and acceptable in young people with depression, with preliminary indications of clinical benefit. These findings support the inclusion of broader patient-centered outcomes beyond symptom change and will inform methodological refinements for future fully powered youth-specific PGx trials.
Related
- Feasibility study of the Care-at-Home Pharmacotherapy Service (CAHPS): pharmacy technician-led home visits for people receiving polypharmacy who are housebound living in socioeconomically deprived areas
- Personalizing Inhaled Therapy in COPD and Asthma: Integrating Drug, Device, and Patient Factors
- Global Protective Ventilator Settings Are Not Regional Protection: A Compartment-Resolved Framework for Personalizing Mechanical Ventilation in Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
- Efficacy of Personalizing Cognitive Remediation for Schizophrenia by Targeting Impairments in Early Auditory Processing
- Trend and distribution of coronal dental caries in Australians adults
BibTeX
@article{roberts2026pharmacoggenetics,
title = {{The pharmacogGENEtics in Youth Depression (GENE-YD) study for personalizing antidepressant pharmacotherapy for young Western Australians - A feasibility study.}},
author = {Bradley Roberts and Zahra Cooper and Aleksandra Miljevic and Susanne Stanley and Bernadette T Majda and Khan R L Collins and Sarah Woodland and Michael J Kyron and Svetlana Baltic and Suzanna E L Temple and P Anthony Akkari and Sean D Hood and Jennifer Rodger},
journal = {Translational psychiatry},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1038/s41398-026-04321-x},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42897167},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The pharmacogGENEtics in Youth Depression (GENE-YD) study for personalizing antidepressant pharmacotherapy for young Western Australians - A feasibility study.
AU - Bradley Roberts
AU - Zahra Cooper
AU - Aleksandra Miljevic
AU - Susanne Stanley
AU - Bernadette T Majda
AU - Khan R L Collins
AU - Sarah Woodland
AU - Michael J Kyron
AU - Svetlana Baltic
AU - Suzanna E L Temple
AU - P Anthony Akkari
AU - Sean D Hood
AU - Jennifer Rodger
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/01
JO - Translational psychiatry
DO - 10.1038/s41398-026-04321-x
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42897167
AB - Pharmacogenetic (PGx) testing to guide antidepressant prescribing is becoming increasingly available. However, its uptake into routine psychiatric practice for young people remains limited due to insufficient youth-specific evidence and uncertainty regarding optimal trial design and outcome selection. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a rigorous triple-blind randomized controlled trial to examine PGx-guided antidepressant treatment compared with treatment-as-usual (TAU) in young Australians with depression. The pharmacoGENEtics in Youth Depression (GENE-YD) study recruited young people aged 16-24 years old with major depressive disorder over 13 months, allocating 1:1 to PGx-Guided treatment or TAU. Depressive symptoms and quality-of-life outcomes were measured using rater-administered measures and self-report questionnaires at Baseline and at 6- and 12-weeks follow-up. Feasibility outcomes included recruitment, adherence, attrition, participant satisfaction, and protocol fidelity. Of 73 individuals screened, 55 were eligible and randomized. Baseline data were collected from 39 participants, with 38 completing assessments through Week 12. Adherence to the study protocol and assessment schedule was high, attrition was low, and participant satisfaction was strong. Clinically meaningful improvements were observed, with the PGx-Guided group showing greater reductions in depressive symptom severity, higher rates of treatment response and remission, and improved quality-of-life outcomes compared with TAU. The GENE-YD Study demonstrated that a triple-blind PGx-guided antidepressant trial is feasible and acceptable in young people with depression, with preliminary indications of clinical benefit. These findings support the inclusion of broader patient-centered outcomes beyond symptom change and will inform methodological refinements for future fully powered youth-specific PGx trials.
SN - 2158-3188
ER -