Research Projects
The important role of negative symptoms in treatment-resistant schizophrenia


Programme(s) to which this project applies:
☑ MPhil/PhD ☒ MRes[Med] ☒ URIS

Treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) is characterized by persistent psychotic symptoms, functional impairments, and poor response to non-clozapine antipsychotics. The latest TRRIP criteria recognized negative and cognitive symptoms. However, the extant literature on these two important features in TRS patients has limitations. First, previous research was limited by chronic TRS samples and lacked longitudinal evidence. Second, previous research seldom applied second-generation negative symptom scales to optimize assessments, nor included hot (emotion-related) cognitive domains which would be closely related to negative symptoms. Third, negative symptoms emerge early before schizophrenia onset and may exacerbate as the disorder progresses, but it remains unclear whether the early trajectories of negative symptoms would differ between TRS and remitted schizophrenia patients. We aim to examine the effects of baseline negative symptoms, hot and cool executive functions on functional outcomes in recently-emerged TRS patients. We also track the trajectories of negative symptoms in TRS and remitted schizophrenia patients. We will recruit TRS patients and remitted schizophrenia patients, and apply second-generation scales serially. Moreover, we will assess the corresponding cool and hot domains of inhibition, shifting and updating components at baseline and endpoint, and measure end-point functional outcome. Our work intends to clarify the role of negative symptoms, hot and cool executive function deficits in recently-emerged TRS patients, and characterize their early trajectory of negative symptoms, paving ways for timely interventions.

Professor SSY Lui , Department of Psychiatry

Dr. Simon Lui is a Clinical Associate Professor of HKU Department of Psychiatry. He conducted studies on psychosis, autism, schizotypy and clinical high-risk populations. He has been ranked as the top 1% worldwide by citations in psychiatry by Clarivate Analytics in 2022–2024. His research interests include psychopathology, cognitive markers, endophenotypes, clinical and functional outcomes, and biological basis of psychosis and related disorders.   

Biography
HKU Scholars Hub
ORCID
lsy570@hku.hk

For more information or to express interest for this project, please email the supervisor or the specified contact point in the project description.  Interested candidates are advised to enclose with your email:

  1. your CV,
  2. a brief description of your research interest and experience, and
  3. two reference letters (not required for HKUMed UG students seeking MRes[Med]/URIS projects).

Information on the research programme, funding support and admission documentations could be referenced online at the Research Postgraduate Admissions website. General admission enquiries should be directed to rpgmed@hku.hk.

HKUMed MBBS students interested in the Master of Research in Medicine (MRes[Med]) programme may visit the programme website for more information.  

HKUMed UG students interested in the Undergraduate Research Internship Scheme (URIS) may visit the scheme’s website for more information. 

Research @ Department of Psychiatry