Psychiatric disorders unfold over the lifecourse, yet genomic studies of these conditions overwhelmingly rely on phenotypes collected at a single time point, often in adulthood. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of psychiatric conditions may therefore miss genetic variants with time-varied relevance to etiology, prevention and treatment, such as those that influence trajectories of symptoms and behaviors, age-at-onset, course of treatment response, and co-evolution of comorbidities. With recent advances in longitudinal biobanks and analytic tools, we posit that incorporating a lifecourse perspective in psychiatric genetics will enable critically relevant insights into each of these areas of investigation.
Gut microbiota profiles in anorexia nervosa: associations with disease severity, BMI, and history of childhood trauma
Study objectivesEmerging evidence suggests a possible link between anorexia nervosa (AN) and alterations in the gut microbiota. This study aimed to characterize the gut microbiota profile in a cohort of Chinese female patients with AN.MethodA comparative analysis of the gut microbiota was conducted between 30 female patients with AN and 30 sex- and age-matched healthy controls (HCs). Fecal samples were collected for 16S rRNA gene sequencing analysis. All participants were assessed using the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Bioinformatics analysis was performed using QIIME2, and statistical analyses were carried out with SPSS 26.0 and R software. Correlations between microbiota differences and body mass index (BMI), EDI, and CTQ were further investigated.ResultsThe analysis revealed differences in beta diversity and the abundances of specific microbial taxa between the two groups; however, no significant differences were observed in alpha diversity nor in the associations between gut microbiota and BMI, disease severity, or childhood trauma.ConclusionsThis study identified limited differences in the gut microbiota composition between patients with AN and HCs. Critically, no robust associations between gut microbiota and clinical features were found after rigorous multiple comparison correction. While nominal (uncorrected) correlations were observed between the specific microbiota and psychological traits, these results are exploratory and should be considered hypothesis-generating. They highlight a potential avenue for future research but require validation in larger, longitudinal cohorts to determine their reproducibility and biological significance.
Closing the Gap in Autism Genetics: Population-Specific Variants and the Imperative for Global Inclusion
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a highly heritable neurodevelopmental condition with an exceptionally complex and heterogeneous genetic architecture, encompassing both polygenic common variants and rare, high-impact variants. Over the past decade, large-scale sequencing studies in Europe and North America have identified hundreds of ASD risk genes and substantially advanced biological insight. However, the global distribution of ASD genomic research remains profoundly imbalanced, with most non-European ancestry populations severely underrepresented.
Understanding Genomics in the Context of ESD
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