Genetic contributions to trail making test performance in UK Biobank

Saskia Hagenaars; Simon Cox; W David Hill; Gail Davies; David Liewald; CHARGE Consortium; Sarah Harris; Andrew McIntosh; Catharine Gale; Ian Deary

doi:10.1038/mp.2017.189

Genetic contributions to trail making test performance in UK Biobank

Saskia Hagenaars, Simon Cox, W David Hill, Gail Davies, David Liewald, CHARGE Consortium, Sarah Harris, Andrew McIntosh, Catharine Gale, Ian Deary

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract / Description of output

The Trail Making Test (TMT) is a widely used test of executive function and has been thought to be strongly associated with general cognitive function. We examined the genetic architecture of the TMT and its shared genetic aetiology with other tests of cognitive function in 23 821 participants from UK Biobank. The single-nucleotide polymorphism-based heritability estimates for trail-making measures were 7.9% (part A), 22.4% (part B) and 17.6% (part B − part A). Significant genetic correlations were identified between trail-making measures and verbal-numerical reasoning (rg40.6), general cognitive function (rg40.6), processing speed (rg40.7)and memory (rg40.3). Polygenic profile analysis indicated considerable shared genetic aetiology between trail making, general cognitive function, processing speed and memory (standardized β between 0.03 and 0.08). These results suggest that trail making is both phenotypically and genetically strongly associated with general cognitive function and processing speed.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1575-1583
Journal	Molecular Psychiatry
Volume	23
Issue number	7
Early online date	19 Sept 2017
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2017.189
Publication status	Published - Jul 2018

Access to Document

10.1038/mp.2017.189

HagenaarsEtal2017NGeneticContributionsToTrailMakingTestFinal published version, 1.48 MBLicence: Creative Commons: Attribution (CC-BY)

The Disconnected Mind Phase 3
Cox, S. & Deary, I.
1/04/16 → 31/03/23
Project: Research
Brain imaging and cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936: III
Wardlaw, J., Bastin, M. & Deary, I.
MRC
1/05/15 → 30/04/19
Project: Research
Stratifying Resilience and Depression Longitudinally
McIntosh, A., Deary, I., Evans, K., Haley, C. & Porteous, D.
UK-based charities
1/01/15 → 30/06/21
Project: Research

Cite this

@article{27b2cb6c82574bff955d33cd56d381ed,

title = "Genetic contributions to trail making test performance in UK Biobank",

abstract = "The Trail Making Test (TMT) is a widely used test of executive function and has been thought to be strongly associated with general cognitive function. We examined the genetic architecture of the TMT and its shared genetic aetiology with other tests of cognitive function in 23 821 participants from UK Biobank. The single-nucleotide polymorphism-based heritability estimates for trail-making measures were 7.9% (part A), 22.4% (part B) and 17.6% (part B − part A). Significant genetic correlations were identified between trail-making measures and verbal-numerical reasoning (rg40.6), general cognitive function (rg40.6), processing speed (rg40.7)and memory (rg40.3). Polygenic profile analysis indicated considerable shared genetic aetiology between trail making, general cognitive function, processing speed and memory (standardized β between 0.03 and 0.08). These results suggest that trail making is both phenotypically and genetically strongly associated with general cognitive function and processing speed.",

author = "Saskia Hagenaars and Simon Cox and Hill, {W David} and Gail Davies and David Liewald and CHARGE Consortium and Sarah Harris and Andrew McIntosh and Catharine Gale and Ian Deary",

note = "gold OA",

year = "2018",

month = jul,

doi = "10.1038/mp.2017.189",

language = "English",

volume = "23",

pages = "1575--1583",

journal = "Molecular Psychiatry",

issn = "1359-4184",

publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",

number = "7",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Genetic contributions to trail making test performance in UK Biobank

AU - Hagenaars, Saskia

AU - Cox, Simon

AU - Hill, W David

AU - Davies, Gail

AU - Liewald, David

AU - Consortium, CHARGE

AU - Harris, Sarah

AU - McIntosh, Andrew

AU - Gale, Catharine

AU - Deary, Ian

N1 - gold OA

PY - 2018/7

Y1 - 2018/7

N2 - The Trail Making Test (TMT) is a widely used test of executive function and has been thought to be strongly associated with general cognitive function. We examined the genetic architecture of the TMT and its shared genetic aetiology with other tests of cognitive function in 23 821 participants from UK Biobank. The single-nucleotide polymorphism-based heritability estimates for trail-making measures were 7.9% (part A), 22.4% (part B) and 17.6% (part B − part A). Significant genetic correlations were identified between trail-making measures and verbal-numerical reasoning (rg40.6), general cognitive function (rg40.6), processing speed (rg40.7)and memory (rg40.3). Polygenic profile analysis indicated considerable shared genetic aetiology between trail making, general cognitive function, processing speed and memory (standardized β between 0.03 and 0.08). These results suggest that trail making is both phenotypically and genetically strongly associated with general cognitive function and processing speed.

AB - The Trail Making Test (TMT) is a widely used test of executive function and has been thought to be strongly associated with general cognitive function. We examined the genetic architecture of the TMT and its shared genetic aetiology with other tests of cognitive function in 23 821 participants from UK Biobank. The single-nucleotide polymorphism-based heritability estimates for trail-making measures were 7.9% (part A), 22.4% (part B) and 17.6% (part B − part A). Significant genetic correlations were identified between trail-making measures and verbal-numerical reasoning (rg40.6), general cognitive function (rg40.6), processing speed (rg40.7)and memory (rg40.3). Polygenic profile analysis indicated considerable shared genetic aetiology between trail making, general cognitive function, processing speed and memory (standardized β between 0.03 and 0.08). These results suggest that trail making is both phenotypically and genetically strongly associated with general cognitive function and processing speed.

U2 - 10.1038/mp.2017.189

DO - 10.1038/mp.2017.189

M3 - Article

SN - 1359-4184

VL - 23

SP - 1575

EP - 1583

JO - Molecular Psychiatry

JF - Molecular Psychiatry

IS - 7

ER -

Genetic contributions to trail making test performance in UK Biobank

Abstract / Description of output

Access to Document

Fingerprint

Projects

The Disconnected Mind Phase 3

Brain imaging and cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936: III

Stratifying Resilience and Depression Longitudinally

Cite this