Genetic risk for psychiatric disorders is related to emotional and behavioral problems in undiagnosed children

A study led by the Sant Joan de Déu Research Institute, the Psychiatry, Mental Health and Addictions group of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute, the CIBER Mental Health area, and the Fundació Althaia shows that genetic predisposition associated with psychiatric disorders is related to various emotional and behavioral difficulties, even in children without a clinical diagnosis. The work has been published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

The team analyzed more than 4,700 schoolchildren in Catalonia aged between 5 and 18 years. From saliva DNA samples, the genetic risk of developing various psychiatric disorders was calculated, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorders (ASD), depression, or schizophrenia. At the same time, data on emotional well-being and behavior were collected through questionnaires completed by the participants themselves (in the case of adolescents), their families, and teachers.

The results show that genetic susceptibility to developing some of the studied psychiatric disorders is related to 35 of the 54 emotional or behavioral alterations studied. This association is especially observed in the genetic risk for ADHD, which shows a clearer and broader relationship with emotional and behavioral problems in children, such as hyperactivity or attention alterations, characteristic of this condition, but also aggression or difficulties in relating. These associations were observed both in the assessments provided by families and in the data reported by teachers and adolescents.

"These data show that genetic risk for mental disorders is related to emotional and behavioral problems even in children who do not meet clinical diagnosis", explains Dr. Silvia Alemany, principal investigator of the Psychiatry, Mental Health and Addictions group at VHIR and CIBERSAM.

In addition, the team highlights the association of genetic factors that predispose to ADHD with a wide variety of problems also related to other psychiatric disorders, such as autism or depression. "These are factors that are not specific to ADHD, but are more transversal and can help us detect other psychiatric disorders", says Dr. Rosa Bosch, coordinator of the SJD MIND Schools program at IRSJD, member of CIBERSAM, Head of Research of the Mental Health Area of the Althaia Foundation University Care Network of Manresa.

The study also revealed the relationship between genetic risk for developing ASD, depression, and schizophrenia with emotional and behavioral problems exclusively in boys.

This study is the largest conducted in Spain to analyze how genetic risk for developing mental disorders manifests in the behavior of children and adolescents in the general school population. "These findings suggest that genetic information could be used in the future for early detection of mental health problems, long before they manifest as clinical disorders", says Dr. Marta Ribasés, principal investigator of the Psychiatry, Mental Health and Addictions group at VHIR and CIBERSAM.

The work was made possible thanks to funding from the Agency for Management of University and Research Grants (AGAUR), the Carlos III Health Institute, the 3Cat Marathon, the European Regional Development Foundation (ERDF), the ECNP Network 'ADHD across the Lifespan', the 'la Caixa' Foundation, the Barcelona Provincial Council, the 'Strategic Plan for Research and Innovation in Health' (PERIS), the Sant Pau Private Research Foundation (FISP), and the Department of Health of the Government of Catalonia.