title: Executive and verbal working memory dysfunction in first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder.
abstract: The authors aimed to investigate cognitive performance of first-degree relatives of probands with bipolar disorder (BD). They hypothesized that the relatives of BD patients would have impaired performance on cognitive tests of frontal-executive functions. A neuropsychological battery was administered to 34 first-degree relatives of BD probands and 25 control subjects. Relatives showed significant impairment in verbal working memory and executive function. Verbal memory and psychomotor performances of relatives were not different from control subjects. One particular component of executive function, cognitive flexibility, was associated with family history of mood episodes with psychotic features. Verbal working memory and executive function deficits may be useful endophenotypic markers of genetic vulnerability to BD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Affective Disorders Unit, Ege University School of Medicine, Izmir, Turkey. boremre@gmail.com
authors.forename: Emre
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bora
authors.forename: Simavi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vahip
authors.forename: Fisun
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Akdeniz
authors.forename: Hatice
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ilerisoy
authors.forename: Ebru
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Aldemir
authors.forename: Müge
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Alkan
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D004193:Discrimination Learning; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D008875:Middle Aged; D011340:Problem Solving; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012718:Set, Psychology; D014706:Verbal Learning