People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) combined with anxiety disorder disorders (DBDs) share about 80% of genetic differences associated with aggressive and antisocial behavior.
This is one of the findings of a study published in the journal Nature Communications that counts on the participation of professor Bru Cormand, from the Faculty of Biology and the Institute of Biomedicine of the University of Barcelona (IBUB), Sant. Joan de Déu (IRSJD) and the Rare Diseases Network Biomedical Research Center (CIBERER), and researchers Marta Ribasés and Josep Antoni Ramos Quiroga, from the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) and Network Biomedical Research Center Mental Health (CIBERSAM).
The study – the most advanced published to date on risk genetic factors shared between people with ADHD and DBDs – is based on the study of approximately 4,000 people affected by these pathologies. impact and 30,000 human controls, within the framework of the European Aggressotype project, from the Horizon 2020 program, aimed at exploring the neurobiologic basis of aggressive behavior.
The study is led by Ditte Demontis and Anders D. Børglum (Aarhus University, Denmark) and Stephen V. Faraone (State University of New York, USA).
ADHD: a mental disorder that does not always come on its own
ADHD is a common behavioral disorder – it affects about 5% of children and 2.5% of adults – and manifests as depression, inactivity and inattention. This disorder is usually accompanied by other psychotic changes, mainly disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs), which may be associated with antisocial and aggressive behavior. .
ADHD and DBD are caused by genetic and environmental factors. For ADHD, genetics is estimated to make up 75%, and in DBDs, it would oscillate between 40 and 70%. These clinical pictures are more common in boys than girls, and when combined, people are more likely to fall into dangerous behaviors, use of addictive substances, and premature death. “
Bru Cormand, Professor, Department of Genetics, Microbiology and Statistics and Head of the Research Group on Neurogenetics, University of Barcelona
“Some people present with two or more psychiatric disorders, and this consistency continues, in many cases, in the axis of history, in which suffers from a mental disorder. as ADHD introduces the door to other comorbid pathologies that contribute to the quality of life of those suffering from the disorder “, notes Marta Ribasés, head of the Genetic Psychology Laboratory of the Vall Research Institute d’Hebrón (VHIR).
Through genome-wide association studies (GWAS), researchers analyzed the genetic contribution of changes in a single nucleotide DNA (SNP) – the most abundant in a human genome – to these psychiatric disorders. . As part of the study, VHIR and UB experts took samples of patients with ADHD diagnosed at Vall d’Hebron Hospital and participated in a genetic data study.
Increased risk genetic changes in patients with ADHD and DBDs
The research team identified a genomic segment in chromosome 11 that increases the risk of ADHD being combined with DBD. “This region has the STIM1 strain, which is involved in the regulation of calcium cell levels, neuronal plasticity and learning memory”, notes Bru Cormand, who coordinated the international working group on genetics in the Aggressotype project.
“Our study shows that genetics are more reliable in people with ADHD and DBD than those who only suffer from ADHD,” reveals Bru Cormand.
“If we compare the genome of patients with ADHD and DBD with the gender of those patients with the same ADHD, we will see that people with both disorders have a higher genetic correlation with high-risk genetic changes. these additional correlations of ADHD and DBD patients would correspond to changes that other authors had in relation to aggressive-related behaviors, ”notes Cormand.
“If we see ADHD as an open door to a negative path, the use of genetic information to identify those most vulnerable will have a strong impact on prevention, early detection and treatment, and will inform research studies new to be effective treatments that may be specific for the disorder or divided between several disorders “, notes Marta Ribasés.
The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, is a new scientific advancement that contributes to expanding the genetic landscape of ADHD comorbidities (i.e., the sequence of pathologies associated with this disorder). ).
From a clinical perspective, knowing the psychosocial changes that divide genetics is a step forward, as it allows prediction of potential secondary complications over the lives of those with ADHD.
“These findings allow us to better understand the origins of ADHD-related DBD and to provide family members with better information about this disorder,” concludes Josep Antoni Ramos Quiroga, head of the Knowledge Service. mind of Vall d’Hebron Hospital and the Research Group on Psychology and mental health addiction at VHIR.
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Magazine Reference:
Demontis, D., et al. (2021) Risk variables and a polygenic architecture of anxiety behavior problems in the context of attention disorder / intolerance. Nature Communication. doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-20443-2.