Pattern Of Genetic Influences Research Articles

Genetic influences on composite neural activations supporting visual target identification

Behavior genetic studies of brain activity associated with complex cognitive operations may further elucidate the genetic and physiological underpinnings of basic and complex neural processing. In the present project, monozygotic (N=51 pairs) and dizygotic (N=48 pairs) twins performed a visual oddball task with dense-array EEG. Using spatial PCA, two principal components each were retained for targets and standards; wavelets were used to obtain time-frequency maps of eigenvalue-weighted event-related oscillations for each individual. Distribution of inter-trial phase coherence (ITC) and single trial power (STP) over time indicated that the early principal component was primarily associated with ITC while the later component was associated with a mixture of ITC and STP. Spatial PCA on point-by-point broad sense heritability matrices revealed data-derived frequency bands similar to those well established in EEG literature. Biometric models of eigenvalue-weighted time-frequency data suggest a link between physiology of oscillatory brain activity and patterns of genetic influence.

Family Background Buys an Education in Minnesota but Not in Sweden

Educational attainment, the highest degree or level of schooling obtained, is associated with important life outcomes, at both the individual level and the group level. Because of this, and because education is expensive, the allocation of education across society is an important social issue. A dynamic quantitative environmental-genetic model can help document the effects of social allocation patterns. We used this model to compare the moderating effect of general intelligence on the environmental and genetic factors that influence educational attainment in Sweden and the U.S. state of Minnesota. Patterns of genetic influence on educational outcomes were similar in these two regions, but patterns of shared environmental influence differed markedly. In Sweden, shared environmental influence on educational attainment was particularly important for people of high intelligence, whereas in Minnesota, shared environmental influences on educational attainment were particularly important for people of low intelligence. This difference may be the result of differing access to education: state-supported access (on the basis of ability) to a uniform higher-education system in Sweden versus family-supported access to a more diverse higher-education system in the United States.

Longitudinal twin study of early literacy development: Preschool through Grade 1

Grade 1 literacy skills of twin children in Australia (New South Wales) and the United States (Colorado) were explored in a genetically sensitive design (N = 319 pairs). Analyses indicated strong genetic influence on word and nonword identification, reading comprehension, and spelling. Rapid naming showed more modest, though reliable, genetic influence. Phonological awareness was subject to high nonshared environment and no reliable genetic effects, and individual measures of memory and learning were also less affected by genes than nonshared environment. Multivariate analyses showed that the same genes affected word identification, reading comprehension, and spelling. Country comparisons indicated that the patterns of genetic influence on reading and spelling in Grade 1 were similar, though for the U.S. but not the Australian children new genes came on stream in the move from kindergarten to Grade 1. We suggest that this is because the more intensive kindergarten literacy curriculum in New South Wales compared with Colorado, consistent with the mean differences between the two countries, means that more of the genes are “online” sooner in Australia because of accelerated overall reading development.

Genetic and environmental influences on pupil performances.

The results presented in this paper are part of a current comparative study of genetic and environmental influences in three educational settings: Stockholm, Jerusalem and the Israeli kibbutz. We specifically wanted to investigate whether a more restrictive educational setting would decrease genetic influences. Here we report on comparisons of cognitive performance measures at several time points for twins/controls, boys/girls and within-pair similarity in MZ, DZ and controls. The tests used were the Raven Progressive Matrices, verbal, reading comprehension and arithmetic. The results show no differences between twins and controls, whilst gender differences seem to be smallest in the Stockholm sample and largest in Jerusalem. A pattern of genetic influences on cognitive performance was also clearly visible in Jerusalem. In Stockholm shared environmental influences at home and at school seemed even stronger than in the kibbutz. No consistent differences were found between tests or occasions.

Genetic and environmental influences on pupil performances

AbstractThe results presented in this paper are part of a current comparative study of genetic and environmental influences in three educational settings: Stockholm, Jerusalem and the Israeli kibbutz. We specifically wanted to investigate whether a more restrictive educational setting would decrease genetic influences. Here we report on comparisons of cognitive performance measures at several time points for twins/controls, boys/girls and within-pair similarity in MZ, DZ and controls. The tests used were the Raven Progressive Matrices, verbal, reading comprehension and arithmetic. The results show no differences between twins and controls, whilst gender differences seem to be smallest in the Stockholm sample and largest in Jerusalem. A pattern of genetic influences on cognitive performance was also clearly visible in Jerusalem. In Stockholm shared environmental influences at home and at school seemed even stronger than in the kibbutz. No consistent differences were found between tests or occasions.

Neonatal Temperament in Monozygotic and Dizygotic Twin Pairs

To determine if neonatal temperament was influenced by genetic factors, temperament was assessed in 316 newborn twins from 47 pairs of monozygotic (MZ) twins, 39 pairs of same-sex dizygotic (DZ) twins, and 72 pairs of opposite-sex dizygotic twins. The neonatal assessment focused on irritability, resistance to soothing, activity level, reactivity, and reinforcement value. Examination of intraclass correlations for MZ and DZ twins and the results of model-fitting analyses indicated that heritability estimates for neonatal temperament were not significantly different from zero, and that there was substantial environmental influence on neonatal temperament. Specific perinatal indicators of risk were found to account for some of the intrapair differences observed for the behavioral variables. It was concluded that there is no clear pattern of genetic influence on temperament in the neonatal period.

Pattern of Genetic Influence on Pulmonary Function

Whether genetic factors influence small airway function and lung volume was examined in 20 adolescent (mean age, 16.2 +/- SD 1.1 years) monozygotic twin pairs, 11 adolescent (mean age, 16.7 +/- 0.7 years) dizygotic twin pairs, and 20 adult (mean age, 38.7 +/- 9.3 years) monozygotic twin pairs. Within-pair variances of adolescent dizygotic twins for height, FVC, FEV1/FVC, V50, V25, V50/FVC, FRC, and delta N2 were significantly larger than those of adolescent monozygotic twins, indicating that these pulmonary function variables are influenced predominantly by genetic factors in adolescence. Within-pair variances of adult monozygotic twins were similar to those of adolescent monozygotic twins in terms of V50 and V25, indicating that these pulmonary function variables are influenced predominantly by genetic factors in adulthood. These results indicate that small airway dynamics, in terms of V50 and V25, are influenced in larger part by genetic factors in adolescence as well as adulthood, whereas lung volumes in terms of FRC and FVC are controlled by genetics only in adolescence.

Genetic influences on digging behaviors in mice (Mus musculus) in laboratory and seminatural settings.

Digging behaviors of several inbred strains of laboratory mice and some of their crosses were examined in three contexts. In laboratory burrow boxes, C57BL/6Abg mice constructed more sophisticated burrow systems than did BALB/cAbg mice. Their F1 hybrids built burrow systems more complex than either parental strain. The same pattern of genetic influence was observed in an outdoor pen. In an escape task that required digging, BALB/c mice escaped more quickly than did C57BL/6 mice; their F1 hybrids showed dominance toward the BALB/c phenotype. These results indicate that behavioral polymorphisms in digging behavior, which may relate to habitat selection, have a genetic basis. The dominance and overdominance toward the better digging parental strain in each type of task suggest the possible evolutionary importance of these digging behaviors.