2025/08/17 by Lucía de Hoyos, Fenja Schlag, Sanjeevan Jahagirdar +91 · 1 voice
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Genetic Associations and Epidemiology #Epigenetics and DNA Methylation #Genetic Mapping and Diversity in Plants and Animals
paper · pdf · doi:10.1101/2025.08.16.667148
openalex publication_date 2025/08/17 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
ABSTRACT Social behaviour is a heritable, context-dependent trait that changes across social settings and development, influencing wellbeing and mental health. We present the first genome-wide meta-regression study of social behaviour from infancy to early adulthood, leveraging 491,246 repeat measures of low prosocial behaviour and peer/social difficulties in European-ancestry cohorts (N eff =121,777, N ind =73,321). We modelled heterogeneity in genetic effects across social domains, informants, and ages (2–29 years), capturing social context through genomic influences. Six loci were identified, including variation within CADM2 ( p =2.51x10 -9 ). The SNP-based heritability was modest (2–7%), and the genetic architecture of social behaviour multidimensional. Polygenic scores demonstrated predictability and accuracy in independent European-ancestry cohorts and, partially, in African-ancestry cohorts (N ind =16,305). Genetic correlations with later-life and mental health outcomes showed context-dependent patterns. Modelling predicted onsets of associations with social behaviour revealed distinct profiles, as observed for autism, ADHD, depression and schizophrenia, highlighting novel opportunities to genetically proxy developmental trajectories.