scholarly journals A Genetic Analysis of Coffee Consumption in a Sample of Dutch Twins

2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaqueline M. Vink ◽  
Annemieke S. Staphorsius ◽  
Dorret I. Boomsma
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Coffee Consumption ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Psychoactive Substance ◽  
Twin Registry ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Dutch Twins ◽  
Twin Resemblance

AbstractCaffeine is by far the most commonly used psychoactive substance. Caffeine is consumed regularly as an ingredient of coffee. Coffee consumption and coffee preference was explored in a sample of 4,495 twins (including 1,231 pairs) registered with the Netherlands Twin Registry. Twin resemblance was assessed by tetrachoric correlations and the influence of both genetic and environmental factors was explored with model fitting analysis in MX. Results showed moderate genetic influences (39%) on coffee consumption. The remaining variance was explained by shared environmental factors (21%) and unique environmental factors (40%). The variance in coffee preference (defined as the proportion of coffee consumption relative to the consumption of coffee and tea in total) was explained by genetic factors (62%) and unique environmental factors (38%).

scholarly journals Heritability of Type 2 Diabetes in the Washington State Twin Registry

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ally R. Avery ◽  
Glen E. Duncan
Keyword(s):  
Type 2 Diabetes ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Washington State ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Twin Registry ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Adult Twins

AbstractApproximately 12% of U.S. adults have type 2 diabetes (T2D). Diagnosed T2D is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors including age and lifestyle. In adults 45 years and older, the Discordant Twin (DISCOTWIN) consortium of twin registries from Europe and Australia showed a moderate-to-high contribution of genetic factors of T2D with a pooled heritability of 72%. The purpose of this study was to investigate the contributions of genetic and environmental factors of T2D in twins 45 years and older in a U.S. twin cohort (Washington State Twin Registry, WSTR) and compare the estimates to the DISCOTWIN consortium. We also compared these estimates with twins under the age of 45. Data were obtained from 2692 monozygotic (MZ) and same-sex dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs over 45 and 4217 twin pairs under 45 who responded to the question ‘Has a doctor ever diagnosed you with (type 2) diabetes?’ Twin similarity was analyzed using both tetrachoric correlations and structural equation modeling. Overall, 9.4% of MZ and 14.7% of DZ twins over the age of 45 were discordant for T2D in the WSTR, compared to 5.1% of MZ and 8% of DZ twins in the DISCOTWIN consortium. Unlike the DISCOTWIN consortium in which heritability was 72%, heritability was only 52% in the WSTR. In twins under the age of 45, heritability did not contribute to the variance in T2D. In a U.S. sample of adult twins, environmental factors appear to be increasingly important in the development of T2D.

Correlated genetic and non-shared environmental influences account for the co-morbidity between female sexual dysfunctions

2008 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Witting ◽  
P. Santtila ◽  
F. Rijsdijk ◽  
M. Varjonen ◽  
P. Jern ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Sexual Function ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Sexual Dysfunctions ◽  
Co Morbidity ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Correlated Factors ◽  
Best Fit

BackgroundPrevious studies have shown moderate heritability for female orgasm. So far, however, no study has addressed the pattern of genetic and environmental influences on diverse sexual dysfunctions in women, nor how genetic and environmental factors contribute to the associations between them.MethodThe sample was drawn from the Genetics of Sex and Aggression (GSA) sample and consisted of 6446 female twins (aged 18–43 years) and 1994 female siblings (aged 18–49 years). The participants responded to the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI), either by post or online.ResultsModel fitting analyses indicated that individual differences on all six subdomains of the FSFI (desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain) were primarily due to non-shared (individual-specific) environmental influences. Genetic influences were modest but significant, whereas shared environmental influences were not significant. A correlated factors model including additive and non-additive genetic and non-shared environmental effects proved to have the best fit and suggested that both correlated additive and non-additive genetic factors and unique environmental factors underlie the co-occurrence of the sexual function problems.ConclusionsThe findings suggest that female sexual dysfunctions are separate entities with some shared aetiology. They also indicate that there is a genetic susceptibility for sexual dysfunctions. The unique experiences of each individual are, however, the main factors determining if, and which, dysfunction develops.

Heritability of Initiation and Duration of Breastfeeding Behavior

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 575-580 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucia Colodro-Conde ◽  
Juan F. Sánchez-Romera ◽  
Juan R. Ordoñana
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Monozygotic Twins ◽  
Best Fitting ◽  
Short And Long Term ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Duration Of Breastfeeding ◽  
Natural Way

Breastfeeding is considered the best and most natural way of feeding infants during the first months of life. Breastfeeding has multiple short- and long-term benefits for the health of the mother and babies, and from an evolutionist standpoint, it would be a behavior worth preserving throughout time. The aim of the present study was to explore the relative influence of genetic and environmental factors in this behavior. Three hundred and ninety pairs of adult female twins provided information about whether they breastfed their children and for how long. Three variables were analyzed: initiation and duration for the first baby, and mean duration for the complete offspring. Polychoric correlations were consistently higher for monozygotic twins, supporting a role for genetic factors (0.49 vs. 0.22 for initiation; 0.44 vs. 0.22 for duration in the first newborn; and 0.52 vs. 0.31 for duration on average). Model-fitting analyses found that in the best-fitting model, variance was explained by additive genetic and non-shared environmental factors, with estimated heritabilities ranging from 0.39 to 0.52 in the measures studied. The rest of the variance would be due to unique environmental factors. We conclude that genetic factors have a significant impact on the complex behavior of breastfeeding.

scholarly journals Domain-Specific and Domain-General Genetic and Environmental Effects on the Intensity of Visual Aesthetic Appraisal

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giacomo Bignardi ◽  
Luca F Ticini ◽  
Dirk Smit ◽  
Tinca JC Polderman
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factor ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Abstract Objects ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Aesthetic Experiences ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Twin Resemblance ◽  
Shared Genetic

Visual aesthetic experiences are universally shared and uniquely diversified components of every human culture. The contribution of genetic and environmental factors to variation in aesthetic appraisal has rarely been examined. Here, we analysed variation in the intensity of aesthetic appraisal in 558 monozygotic and 216 dizygotic same sex adult twin pairs when they were presented with three kinds of visual stimuli: abstract objects, sceneries, and faces. We estimated twin resemblance and heritability for the three stimuli types, as well as a shared genetic factor between the three stimuli types. Genetic factors played a moderate role in the variation of intensity of aesthetic appraisal (heritability 26 to 41%). Both shared and unique underlying genetic factors significantly accounted for domain-general and domain-specific differences. Our findings are the first to show the extent to which variation in the intensity of aesthetic experiences result from the contribution of genetic and environmental factors.

Clustering of insulin resistance, total and central abdominal fat: same genes or same environment?

Twin Research ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 218-225 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Samaras ◽  
Tuan V Nguyen ◽  
Arthur B Jenkins ◽  
John A Eisman ◽  
Gabrielle M Howard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Insulin Resistance ◽  
Insulin Secretion ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Intraclass Correlation ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Model Assessment ◽  
Central Fat ◽  
Total Fat

AbstractObesity, insulin resistance and disturbed glucose metabolism cluster within the Insulin Resistance Syndrome (IRS). Whether this reflects shared genetic or environmental factors detectable in ‘normal’ populations (not selected for IRS features) is unknown. This study estimated (i) genetic influences on IRS traits and (ii) shared and specific genetic and environmental factors on the relationships between these traits in healthy female twins. Fasting insulin, glucose, total and central fat were measured in 59 monozygotic (MZ) and 51 dizygotic (DZ) female twin pairs aged ( ± SD) 52 ± 13 years. Body fat was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, insulin resistance and secretion by a modified homeostasis model assessment. Using intraclass correlation coefficients and univariate model-fitting analyses, genetic influences were found in total fat, central fat, insulin resistance, fasting glucose and insulin secretion, with genetic factors explaining 64, 57, 59, 75 and 68% of their variance, respectively, using the latter technique. In matched analysis intra-pair differences in total and central fat related to intra-pair differences in insulin resistance (r2 = 0.19, P < 0.001). Multivariate model-fitting showed a close genetic relationship between total and central fat (r = 0.88). The genetic correlation between IR and central fat (0.41) was significantly greater than that for total fat (0.24), suggesting that central fat is not only a predictor of, but shares considerable genetic influence with, insulin resistance. In Cholesky analysis, these genetic influences were separate from those shared between central and total fat. In conclusion, both shared and specific genetic factors regulate components of the IRS in healthy females. However, there were discrete genetic influences on -cell insulin secretion, not shared with other IRS components, suggesting that a separate genetic propensity exists for Type2 diabetes. These findings suggest we may understand the genetic and environmental influences on IRS from the study of the normal population.

Cocaine use, abuse and dependence in a population-based sample of female twins

1998 ◽  
Vol 173 (4) ◽  
pp. 345-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth S. Kendler ◽  
Carol A. Prescott
Keyword(s):  
Cocaine Abuse ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Cocaine Use ◽  
Past Half Century ◽  
History Of ◽  
Population Based Registry ◽  
Twin Resemblance

BackgroundAlthough cocaine use in women has increased substantially over the past half-century, we understand little about the aetiology in women of cocaine use and abuse, and know almost nothing about the role of genetic factors.MethodWe obtained by telephone interview a history of lifetime cocaine use, abuse and dependence from 1934 individual twins from female–female pairs ascertained through a population-based registry, including both members of 485 monozygotic (MZ) and 335 dizygotic (DZ) pairs.ResultsThe prevalence of lifetime cocaine use, abuse and dependence were 14.0%, 3.3% and 2.3%. Probandwise concordance rates, in MZ and DZ twins, respectively, were: cocaine use 54% and 42%; cocaine abuse 47% and 8% and cocaine dependence 35% and 0%. In MZ and DZ twins, odds ratios were: cocaine use 14.2 and 6.7 and cocaine abuse 40.8 and 2.7. Biometrical model-fitting suggested that twin resemblance for liability to cocaine use was due to both genetic and familial–environmental factors while twin resemblance for cocaine abuse and symptoms of dependence was due solely to genetic factors. Estimated heritabilities were: cocaine use 0.39, cocaine abuse 0.79 and symptoms of dependence 0.65.ConclusionsThe vulnerability to cocaine use and particularly cocaine abuse and dependence in women is substantially influenced by genetic factors.

scholarly journals A Reevaluation of the 1990 “Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart” IQ Study

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay Joseph
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Ability ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Model Fitting ◽  
Monozygotic Twin ◽  
Cohort Effects ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Dizygotic Twin ◽  
Full Sample ◽  
Iq Scores

In 1990, Thomas J. Bouchard, Jr. and colleagues published the widely cited 1990 “Minnesota Study of Twins Reared Apart” (MISTRA) Science IQ study. To arrive at the conclusion that “IQ is strongly affected by genetic factors,” Bouchard and colleagues omitted their control group reared-apart dizygotic twin (“DZA”) IQ-score correlations. Near-full-sample correlations published after the study’s 2000 endpoint show that the reared-apart monozygotic twin (“MZA”) and DZA group IQ correlations did not differ at a statistically significant level, suggesting that the study failed the first step in determining that IQ scores are influenced by heredity. After bypassing the model-fitting technique they used in most non-IQ MISTRA studies, the researchers assumed that the MZA group IQ-score correlation alone “directly estimates heritability.” This method was based on unsupported assumptions by the researchers, and they largely overlooked the confounding influence of cohort effects. Bouchard and colleagues then decided to count most environmental influences they did recognize as genetic influences. I conclude that the MISTRA IQ study failed to discover genetic influences on IQ scores and cognitive ability across the studied population, and that the study should be evaluated in the context of psychology’s replication problem.

scholarly journals interactions between genetic and environmental factors determine direction of population lateralization

2005 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 598-598 ◽  
Author(s):  
chao deng
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Head Rotation ◽  
Head Turning ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetically Determined

direction of the embyro's head rotation is determined by asymmetrical expression of several genes (such as shh, nodal, lefty, and fgf8) in hensen's node. this genetically determined head-turning bias provides a base for light-aligned population lateralization in chicks, in which the direction of the lateralization is determined by genetic factors and the degree of the lateralization is determined by environmental factors.

Muscle Dissatisfaction and Muscle-Enhancing Substance Use: A Population-Based Twin Study in Young Adult Men

2006 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anu Raevuori ◽  
Anna Keski-Rahkonen ◽  
Richard J. Rose ◽  
Aila Rissanen ◽  
Jaakko Kaprio
Keyword(s):  
Substance Use ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Twin Study ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Tetrachoric Correlation ◽  
Polychoric Correlation ◽  
Adult Men ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Best Fit

AbstractIn the population-based FinnTwin16 study, proportions of genetic and environmental factors contributing to muscle dissatisfaction and muscle-enhancing substance use were assessed in 319 pairs of twin brothers: 141 monozygotic (MZ) and 178 dizygotic (DZ) pairs. In addition there were 86 twin individuals from pairs in which only one co-twin responded. Of all respondents, 30% experienced high muscle dissatisfaction. The corresponding proportion of muscle-enhancing substance use was 10%. The subjects were similar in age (23.8 years, 95% confidence interval [CI] 23.76–23.84), body mass index (23.7, 95% CI 23.5–23.9), and waist circumference (84.5 cm, 95% CI 83.7–85.2), independent of their muscle dissatisfaction or muscle-enhancing substance use status and independent of their zygosity. The MZ polychoric correlation for muscle dissatisfaction was .39 (95% CI .17–.58) and .27 for DZ pairs (95% CI .07–.46). The MZ tetrachoric correlation for muscle-enhancing substance use was .65 (95% CI .28–.87) and .56 for DZ pairs (95% CI .26–.78). The AE model, where additive genetic factors (A) accounted for 42% (95% CI .23–.59) and unique environmental factors (E) 58% (95% CI .41–.77) of the liability, provided the best fit for muscle dissatisfaction. The CE model, where common environmental factors (C) accounted for 60% (95% CI .37–.77) and unique environmental factors (E) 40% (95% CI .23–.63) of the liability, provided the best fit for muscle-enhancing substance use. Both genetic and unique (nonfamilial) environmental factors are involved in muscle dissatisfaction in the population. Nongenetic factors (both familial and non-familial) appear to best explain the use of muscle-enhancing substances.

scholarly journals Environmental and Genetic Contributions to Indicators of Oral Malodor in Twins

2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (6) ◽  
pp. 568-572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter A. Bretz ◽  
Aaron Biesbrock ◽  
Patricia M. Corby ◽  
Andrea L. Corby ◽  
Walter G. Bretz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Sulfur Compounds ◽  
Exhaled Breath ◽  
Tongue Coating ◽  
Oral Malodor ◽  
Volatile Sulfur Compounds ◽  
Item Questionnaire ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Contributions

This study aimed to: (1) determine concordance rates of self-reported and subjectively determined indicators of oral malodor in twins; (2) determine the relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to levels of volatile sulfur compounds (VSCs) in intraoral and exhaled breath. Fifty-one twin pairs participated in the study. Measurements of VSCs were obtained by a halimeter. The presence of tongue coatings was determined and twins filled out a 32-item questionnaire on oral malodor indicators independently of one another. Estimates of heritability (h2) for halimeter measurements were computed by SOLAR. The concordance rates for the presence of tongue coating among identical and fraternal twins were 67% and 11%, respectively. In the 10 most informative items, 70% exhibited higher concordance rates for identical than for fraternal twins. Of particular interest were the differences in concordance rates for dry mouth, sinus infection and unusual sweating. The h2 for intra-oral breath was 0.28 ± 0.17 (NS), whereas the h2 for exhaled breath was 0.50 ± 0.20 (p = .0207). The concordance rates of tongue coatings and malodor indicators were higher in identical twins than in fraternal twins. Intraoral breath VSC values were primarily attributable to environmental factors, whereas exhaled breath VSC values were partially explained by genetic factors.

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