title: Genetic influences on resting-state functional networks: A twin study.
abstract: Alterations in resting-state networks (RSNs) are often associated with psychiatric and neurologic disorders. Given this critical linkage, it has been hypothesized that RSNs can potentially be used as endophenotypes for brain diseases. To validate this notion, a critical step is to show that RSNs exhibit heritability. However, the investigation of the genetic basis of RSNs has only been attempted in the default-mode network at the region-of-interest level, while the genetic control on other RSNs has not been determined yet. Here, we examined the genetic and environmental influences on eight well-characterized RSNs using a twin design. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data in 56 pairs of twins were collected. The genetic and environmental effects on each RSN were estimated by fitting the functional connectivity covariance of each voxel in the RSN to the classic ACE twin model. The data showed that although environmental effects accounted for the majority of variance in wide-spread areas, there were specific brain sites that showed significant genetic control for individual RSNs. These results suggest that part of the human brain functional connectome is shaped by genomic constraints. Importantly, this information can be useful for bridging genetic analysis and network-level assessment of brain disorders.
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Yixiao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Zhiwei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: The Neuroscience Program, The Huck Institutes of Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Zhifeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.affiliation: Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Xiao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Xingshun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Xiaomei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Yingcheng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Liansheng
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
authors.forename: Huaqing
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Meng
authors.affiliation: Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania.|The Neuroscience Program, The Huck Institutes of Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Nanyin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D000465:Algorithms; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D063132:Connectome; D004777:Environment; D005260:Female; D005823:Genetics; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D007360:Intelligence / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology*; D012146:Rest / Q000502:physiology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: heritability; resting-state networks; twin study