Spanish researchers have been talking about their role in creating the largest map of psychiatric disorder genes to date.
The discoveries have led to the identification of three "genetically related" psychiatric groups.
The research found 109 genetic variants linked to eight psychiatric disorders in a study involving about 230,000 patients globally.
The findings of the project, led by the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium at Harvard University, USA, were reported recently in the journal Cell..
The genes are linked to autism, ADHD, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and Tourette Syndrome, the researchers say.
One of the genetic groups is defined as compulsive behaviours such as OCD and anorexia. A second involves mood and psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression. The third are described as early onset neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism, ADHD and Tourette Syndrome.
The study suggested some genes that could underly all the eight disorders in the analysis. These include DCC, which is involved in the development of the nervous system and the RBFOX1 gene, which regulates splicing of many genes.
Professor Bru Cormand, from the University of Barcelona, Spain, said: “Those disorders listed in the same group tend to share more risk genetic factors between them than with other groups. Moreover, we saw that these groups built on the basis of genetic criteria match with the clinical output."
Professor Cormand added: "The new study does not put emphasis on the genes shared by members of a particular group but on the genes shared by the highest number of disorders. That is, those factors that would somehow give way to a ‘sensitive’ brain, more likely to suffer from any psychiatric disorder.
"And the fact that this could be one or another disorder would depend on specific genetic factors, not forgetting about the environmental factors."
Researcher Antoni Ramos-Quiroga said: "these results help people with ADHD so they can understand the disorder and also why they can suffer from depression more frequently. Furthermore, this is a new scientific evidence that ADHD can persist over life and be present in adults.
"We hope this helps to reduce the social stigma regarding ADHD and the other mental illnesses."
Genomic Relationships, Novel Loci, and Pleiotropic Mechanisms across Eight Psychiatric Disorders. Cross-Disorder Group of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium. Cell 12 December 2019
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