NCMD Seminar Series Presents 'The role of sex hormones in the aetiology of mood disorders' & 'Understanding the symptom profile of PMDD'

Today, we had the pleasure of Newcastle University PhD candidates, Dr Jess Nicholls-Mindlin and Rachel Gatley, presenting for our NCMD Seminar Series.

Dr Nicholls-Mindlin is a resident doctor currently taking time out of training to complete a PhD at Newcastle University. She is interested in endocrine influences on mental health, particularly the cognitive mechanisms by which endogenous and synthetic sex hormones may modulate mood. Prior to her PhD, she studied medicine at the University of Oxford, and completed an Academic Foundation Program at Newcastle University. Today, she presented her talk about 'The role of sex hormones in the aetiology of mood disorders'. She then presented the preliminary results from a study investigating the influence of hormonal contraceptives on reinforcement learning, anhedonia and affective state. She also discussed methodological challenges in assessing the effects of sex hormones on mood, and plans for how to overcome these challenges in her PhD. Dr Nicholls-Mindlin is a regular chair of our NCMD seminars and it was great to host her as a speaker this week.

Rachel Gately is also a PhD candidate at Newcastle University. She completed her BSc Psychology at Teesside University and then studied MSc Cognitive Neuroscience and Human Neuroimaging at The University of Sheffield. She presented on her PhD focus: 'Understanding the symptom profile of PMDD'. Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) refers to a set of symptoms experienced in the week before menses which can interfere with everyday functioning. Her presentation explored how she intends to research PMDD in reference to key papers that have informed her approach.

Thank you to both speakers this week for their insightful talks!

If you any colleagues or trainees would like to be added to the NCMD mailing list please contact samantha.jewell-mills@newcastle.ac.uk