The authors of this study concluded that the current clinical boundaries between major psychiatric disorders do not reflect distinct underlying genetic aetiologies; many psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, share large portions of common variant risk.1 The observed positive genetic correlations are consistent with several hypothetical explanations. For example, they may reflect shared genetic risk factors that increase susceptibility to multiple psychiatric disorders, alongside additional disorder‑specific genetic and non‑genetic influences that shape the eventual clinical presentation.1
References:
1. Marshall M. The hidden links between mental disorders. Nature 2020; 581: 19–21.
2. Brainstorm Consortium. Analysis of shared heritability in common disorders of the brain. Science 2018; 360: eaap8757.