A leading professor in Bipolar Disorder is to deliver a fascinating lecture in Worcester later this month.
Following her successful talk at the Hay Festival earlier this month, Professor Lisa Jones, from the University of Worcester, will give a talk titled "Learning from patients: Why psychiatric genetics is not all about DNA", on Tuesday, June 21.
Professor Jones will discuss what she has learned from researching the genetic basis of severe mental illness. She will discuss her current work on affective disorders, particularly bipolar disorder, and her earlier work in schizophrenia. She will explain why listening to patients and devising methods to accurately measure their experiences is as crucial to the success of psychiatric genetics as modern laboratory techniques for DNA analysis.
Professor Jones joined the University of Worcester last year to further develop her work with Professor Ian Jones, from Cardiff University, through the national Bipolar Disorder Research Network, which involves over 6,000 people with lived experience of bipolar disorder throughout the UK.
Professor Lisa Jones said: "The most important thing for me is spreading awareness for the issues surrounding severe mental illness and to create greater understanding of psychiatric genetics."
Professors Lisa and Ian Jones were joined by Clare Dolman, Vice Chair of Bipolar UK, when they delivered an engaging talk, to a packed audience at the Hay Festival. Their talk considered the factors that can lead to both mania and depression, and examined recent and future advances in the treatment of this form of mental illness.
Professor Lisa Jones said: "Our ability to treat bipolar disorder is hampered by the limits of our understanding of its causes. This was an exciting opportunity to discuss our research with the Hay Festival audience."
Professor Jones" lecture takes place at the University's Riverside Building on Hylton Road on Tuesday, June 21 at 5.15pm.