SynthesisNature human behaviour2024
A genome-wide investigation into the underlying genetic architecture of personality traits and overlap with psychopathology.
Synthesis in Nature human behaviour, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Genome-wide association studies of infant and toddler temperament in European and multi-ancestry populations.Nature human behaviour · 2026Pooled it
- Genome-wide association analyses of borderline personality disorder identify 11 loci and highlight shared risk with mental and somatic disorders.Nature genetics · 2026Pooled it
- Genome-wide meta-analysis of quantitatively measured generalized anxiety symptoms in individuals of European ancestry.Nature human behaviour · 2026Pooled it
- The genetics of cannabis lifetime use.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Pooled it
- Multi-ancestry investigation of the genomics of erectile dysfunction.Nature communications · 2025Pooled it
- Genome-wide association meta-analysis and rare copy number variant analysis of treatment-resistant depression.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- The mediating effect of neuroticism on the association between brain signal variability in the prefrontal cortex and depression among healthy individuals.Brain imaging and behavior · 2026Article
- Genetic associations with the Big Five personality traits probed in one million people.Nature · 2026Article
- Article
- The genetics of fibromyalgia and its relationships to psychiatric and medical traits.Nature communications · 2026Article
- [Embryonic origin of temperament: notochord and early signaling].Revista medica del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social · 2026Review
- Personality Heterogeneity Shapes the Neural Organization of Conditioned Threat Learning.Research square · 2026Article
- Mapping the genetic architecture of human cortical expansion and its links to neuropsychiatric disorders.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Associations of stable psychological traits with multi-omic subtypes of Alzheimer's dementia.Translational psychiatry · 2026Article
- Predictors of depressive symptoms and depression in women with previous pregnancy loss.The British journal of clinical psychology · 2026Article
- Colocalization and discordance between plasma and brain protein quantitative trait loci.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Machine-Learning Decomposition Identifies a Big Two Structure in Human Personality with Distinct Neurocognitive Profiles.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Crystallized and fluid cognitive abilities have different genetic associations with neuropsychiatric disorders.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Ancient regulatory evolution shapes individual language abilities in present-day humans.Science advances · 2026Article
- Loneliness as a Pathway Linking Hearing Decline to Cognitive Aging: Longitudinal and Genetic Evidence.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
- Update of
Authors and funding
12 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Personality is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors and is associated with other psychiatric traits such as anxiety and depression. The 'big five' personality traits, which include neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness, are a widely accepted and influential framework for understanding and describing human personality. Of the big five personality traits, neuroticism has most often been the focus of genetic studies and is linked to various mental illnesses, including depression, anxiety and schizophrenia. Our knowledge of the genetic architecture of the other four personality traits is more limited. Here, utilizing the Million Veteran Program cohort, we conducted a genome-wide association study in individuals of European and African ancestry. Adding other published data, we performed genome-wide association study meta-analysis for each of the five personality traits with sample sizes ranging from 237,390 to 682,688. We identified 208, 14, 3, 2 and 7 independent genome-wide significant loci associated with neuroticism, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness, respectively. These findings represent 62 novel loci for neuroticism, as well as the first genome-wide significant loci discovered for agreeableness. Gene-based association testing revealed 254 genes showing significant association with at least one of the five personality traits. Transcriptome-wide and proteome-wide analysis identified altered expression of genes and proteins such as CRHR1, SLC12A5, MAPT and STX4. Pathway enrichment and drug perturbation analyses identified complex biology underlying human personality traits. We also studied the inter-relationship of personality traits with 1,437 other traits in a phenome-wide genetic correlation analysis, identifying new associations. Mendelian randomization showed positive bidirectional effects between neuroticism and depression and anxiety, while a negative bidirectional effect was observed for agreeableness and these psychiatric traits. This study improves our comprehensive understanding of the genetic architecture underlying personality traits and their relationship to other complex human traits.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.