ArticleMolecular psychiatry2020
Uncovering the complex genetics of human character.
Article in Molecular psychiatry, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 43 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
43 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Phenotypic and genetic analysis of a wellbeing factor score in the UK Biobank and the impact of childhood maltreatment and psychiatric illness.Translational psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Research Involvement, Career Determinants, Study Experiences, and Personality Traits of Health-Care Students and Workers: The Research In-Depth Study Protocol.Health science reports · 2026Article
- [Embryonic origin of temperament: notochord and early signaling].Revista medica del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social · 2026Review
- Genetic foundations of interindividual neurophysiological variability.Science advances · 2025Article
- Genetic Foundations of Inter-individual Neurophysiological Variability.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Perceptions of Monica Geller inBehavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Evaluation of an integration community project for asylum seekers in Sweden: physical activity adherence and changes in character traits and life satisfaction.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Gene expression networks regulated by human personality.Molecular psychiatry · 2024Review
- The role of familial factors and neuroticism in the association between exposure to offensive behaviors at work and long-term sickness absence due to common mental disorders - a prospective twin study.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Nursing students' personality (Temperament and Character), burnout symptoms, and health and well-being.International journal of nursing studies advances · 2024Article
- The place of Free Will: the freedom of the prisoner.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2024Review
- A pilot study examining the relationship between chronic heroin use and telomere length among individuals of African ancestry.Pharmacology, biochemistry, and behavior · 2023Article
- Temperament & Character account for brain functional connectivity at rest: A diathesis-stress model of functional dysregulation in psychosis.Molecular psychiatry · 2023Review
- Disentangling the personality pathways to well-being.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Uncovering the complex genetic architecture of human plasma lipidome using machine learning methods.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- Three joint temperament-character configurations account for learning, personality and well-being: normative demographic findings in a representative national population.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Getting it right: Teaching undergraduate biology to undermine racial essentialism.Biology methods & protocols · 2023Article
- Genetic and epigenetic effects on couple adjustment in context of romantic relationship: A scoping systematic review.Frontiers in genetics · 2023Article
- Article
- Dispositional mindfulness and BIS/BAS up-close: can the self-regulation of people be seen in the eyes?Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
27 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Human personality is 30-60% heritable according to twin and adoption studies. Hundreds of genetic variants are expected to influence its complex development, but few have been identified. We used a machine learning method for genome-wide association studies (GWAS) to uncover complex genotypic-phenotypic networks and environmental interactions. The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) measured the self-regulatory components of personality critical for health (i.e., the character traits of self-directedness, cooperativeness, and self-transcendence). In a discovery sample of 2149 healthy Finns, we identified sets of single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that cluster within particular individuals (i.e., SNP sets) regardless of phenotype. Second, we identified five clusters of people with distinct profiles of character traits regardless of genotype. Third, we found 42 SNP sets that identified 727 gene loci and were significantly associated with one or more of the character profiles. Each character profile was related to different SNP sets with distinct molecular processes and neuronal functions. Environmental influences measured in childhood and adulthood had small but significant effects. We confirmed the replicability of 95% of the 42 SNP sets in healthy Korean and German samples, as well as their associations with character. The identified SNPs explained nearly all the heritability expected for character in each sample (50 to 58%). We conclude that self-regulatory personality traits are strongly influenced by organized interactions among more than 700 genes despite variable cultures and environments. These gene sets modulate specific molecular processes in brain for intentional goal-setting, self-reflection, empathy, and episodic learning and memory.
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