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Heritability estimates of spatial working memory and set‐shifting in a healthy Chinese twin sample: A preliminary study
Author(s) -
Zhou Hanyu,
Li Zhi,
Xie Dongjie,
Xu Ting,
Cheung Eric E. F.,
Li Huanhuan,
Chan Raymond C. K.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
psych journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.417
H-Index - 14
eISSN - 2046-0260
pISSN - 2046-0252
DOI - 10.1002/pchj.227
Subject(s) - heritability , cambridge neuropsychological test automated battery , endophenotype , twin study , set (abstract data type) , psychology , developmental psychology , sample (material) , additive genetic effects , working memory , spatial memory , genetics , cognition , biology , computer science , chemistry , chromatography , neuroscience , programming language
Impairments in spatial working memory (SWM) and set‐shifting abilities have both been consistently observed in individuals with schizophrenia and are considered to be potential endophenotypes of this illness. However, an endophenotype needs to fulfill a set of stringent criteria, including heritability. This study examined the heritability of these two functions in a healthy Chinese twin sample. Forty‐five pairs of monozygotic (MZ) twins and 35 pairs of dizygotic (DZ) twins completed the SWM task and the Intra‐Extra Dimensional Set‐Shifting (IED) task of the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB). We found a moderate heritability for SWM, of which the familial/genetic factors accounted for 33% of the total variance. However, we failed to find any significant heritability for set‐shifting ability, of which the specific environmental factor explained most of the variance (85%). The preliminary findings from this small healthy Chinese twin sample suggest that SWM is heritable, whereas the set‐shifting ability may reflect “extra‐genetic” influences.