Genetic correlates of socio-economic status influence the pattern of shared heritability across mental health traits

Andries T. Marees (), Dirk J. A. Smit, Abdel Abdellaoui, Michel G. Nivard, Wim Brink, Damiaan Denys, Titus Galama, Karin J. H. Verweij and Eske M. Derks ()
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Andries T. Marees: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Dirk J. A. Smit: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Abdel Abdellaoui: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Michel G. Nivard: VU University Amsterdam
Wim Brink: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Damiaan Denys: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Karin J. H. Verweij: Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam
Eske M. Derks: QIMR Berghofer, Translational Neurogenomics Group

Nature Human Behaviour, 2021, vol. 5, issue 8, 1065-1073

Abstract: Abstract Epidemiological studies show high comorbidity between different mental health problems, indicating that individuals with a diagnosis of one disorder are more likely to develop other mental health problems. Genetic studies reveal substantial sharing of genetic factors across mental health traits. However, mental health is also genetically correlated with socio-economic status (SES), and it is therefore important to investigate and disentangle the genetic relationship between mental health and SES. We used summary statistics from large genome-wide association studies (average N ~ 160,000) to estimate the genetic overlap across nine psychiatric disorders and seven substance use traits and explored the genetic influence of three different indicators of SES. Using genomic structural equation modelling, we show significant changes in patterns of genetic correlations after partialling out SES-associated genetic variation. Our approach allows the separation of disease-specific genetic variation and genetic variation shared with SES, thereby improving our understanding of the genetic architecture of mental health.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41562-021-01053-4

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