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Zhang J, Weissenkampen JD, Kember RL, Grove J, Børglum AD, Robinson EB, Brodkin ES, Almasy L, Bucan M, Sebro R. Phenotypic and ancestry-related assortative mating in autism. Mol Autism 2024; 15:27. [PMID: 38877467 PMCID: PMC11177537 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-024-00605-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/16/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Positive assortative mating (AM) in several neuropsychiatric traits, including autism, has been noted. However, it is unknown whether the pattern of AM is different in phenotypically defined autism subgroups [e.g., autism with and without intellectually disability (ID)]. It is also unclear what proportion of the phenotypic AM can be explained by the genetic similarity between parents of children with an autism diagnosis, and the consequences of AM on the genetic structure of the population. METHODS To address these questions, we analyzed two family-based autism collections: the Simons Foundation Powering Autism Research for Knowledge (SPARK) (1575 families) and the Simons Simplex Collection (SSC) (2283 families). RESULTS We found a similar degree of phenotypic and ancestry-related AM in parents of children with an autism diagnosis regardless of the presence of ID. We did not find evidence of AM for autism based on autism polygenic scores (PGS) (at a threshold of |r|> 0.1). The adjustment of ancestry-related AM or autism PGS accounted for only 0.3-4% of the fractional change in the estimate of the phenotypic AM. The ancestry-related AM introduced higher long-range linkage disequilibrium (LD) between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on different chromosomes that are highly ancestry-informative compared to SNPs that are less ancestry-informative (D2 on the order of 1 × 10-5). LIMITATIONS We only analyzed participants of European ancestry, limiting the generalizability of our results to individuals of non-European ancestry. SPARK and SSC were both multicenter studies. Therefore, there could be ancestry-related AM in SPARK and SSC due to geographic stratification. The study participants from each site were unknown, so we were unable to evaluate for geographic stratification. CONCLUSIONS This study showed similar patterns of AM in autism with and without ID, and demonstrated that the common genetic influences of autism are likely relevant to both autism groups. The adjustment of ancestry-related AM and autism PGS accounted for < 5% of the fractional change in the estimate of the phenotypic AM. Future studies are needed to evaluate if the small increase of long-range LD induced by ancestry-related AM has impact on the downstream analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Zhang
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Rachel L Kember
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jakob Grove
- Center for Genomics and Personalized Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Biomedicine (Human Genetics) and iSEQ Center, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Bioinformatics Research Centre, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- The Lundbeck Foundation Initiative for Integrative Psychiatric Research, iPSYCH, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Anders D Børglum
- Center for Genomics and Personalized Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Biomedicine (Human Genetics) and iSEQ Center, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- The Lundbeck Foundation Initiative for Integrative Psychiatric Research, iPSYCH, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Elise B Robinson
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Edward S Brodkin
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Laura Almasy
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Biomedical and Health Informatics, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Maja Bucan
- Department of Genetics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ronnie Sebro
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA.
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Jackson E, Galvin J, Warrier V, Baron-Cohen S, Luo S, Dunbar RIM, Proctor H, Lee E, Richards G. Evidence of assortative mating for theory of mind via facial expressions but not language. JOURNAL OF SOCIAL AND PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS 2022; 39:3660-3679. [PMID: 36398165 PMCID: PMC9663490 DOI: 10.1177/02654075221106451] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Assortative mating is a phenomenon in which romantic partners typically resemble each other at a level greater than chance. There is converging evidence that social behaviours are subject to assortative mating, though less is known regarding social cognition. Social functioning requires the ability to identify and understand the mental states of others, i.e., theory of mind. The present study recruited a sample of 102 heterosexual couples via an online survey to test if theory of mind as measured using facial expressions (Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test) or language (Stiller-Dunbar Stories Task) is associated with assortative mating. Results provide evidence of assortative mating for theory of mind via facial expressions, though there was no such effect for theory of mind via language. Assortative mating for theory of mind via facial expressions was not moderated by length of relationship nor by partner similarity in age, educational attainment, or religiosity, all variables relevant to social stratification. This suggests assortative mating for theory of mind via facial expressions is better explained by partners being alike at the start of their relationship (initial assortment) rather than becoming similar through sustained social interaction (convergence), and by people seeking out partners that are like themselves (active assortment) rather than simply pairing with those from similar demographic backgrounds (social homogamy).
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Jackson
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, UK
| | - John Galvin
- Department of Psychology, Birmingham City University, Birmingham, West Midlands, UK
| | - Varun Warrier
- Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK
| | - Simon Baron-Cohen
- Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK
| | - Shanhong Luo
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, USA
| | - Robin IM Dunbar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Hannah Proctor
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, UK
| | - Eva Lee
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, UK
| | - Gareth Richards
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, UK
- Autism Research Centre, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, UK
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