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Tissink E, de Lange SC, Savage JE, Wightman DP, de Leeuw CA, Kelly KM, Nagel M, van den Heuvel MP, Posthuma D. Genome-wide association study of cerebellar volume provides insights into heritable mechanisms underlying brain development and mental health. Commun Biol 2022; 5:710. [PMID: 35842455 PMCID: PMC9288439 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-03672-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Cerebellar volume is highly heritable and associated with neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. Understanding the genetic architecture of cerebellar volume may improve our insight into these disorders. This study aims to investigate the convergence of cerebellar volume genetic associations in close detail. A genome-wide associations study for cerebellar volume was performed in a discovery sample of 27,486 individuals from UK Biobank, resulting in 30 genome-wide significant loci and a SNP heritability of 39.82%. We pinpoint the likely causal variants and those that have effects on amino acid sequence or cerebellar gene-expression. Additionally, 85 genome-wide significant genes were detected and tested for convergence onto biological pathways, cerebellar cell types, human evolutionary genes or developmental stages. Local genetic correlations between cerebellar volume and neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders reveal shared loci with Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia. These results provide insights into the heritable mechanisms that contribute to developing a brain structure important for cognitive functioning and mental health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elleke Tissink
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Siemon C de Lange
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Sleep and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jeanne E Savage
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Douglas P Wightman
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Christiaan A de Leeuw
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Kristen M Kelly
- Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Mats Nagel
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Martijn P van den Heuvel
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Section Complex Trait Genetics, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Medical Center, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Danielle Posthuma
- Department of Complex Trait Genetics, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, 1081 HV, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. .,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Section Complex Trait Genetics, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Vrije Universiteit Medical Center, Amsterdam UMC, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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