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Heritability and Reliability of P300, P50 and Duration Mismatch Negativity

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Abstract

Background

Event-related potentials (ERPs) have been suggested as possible endophenotypes of schizophrenia. We investigated the test–retest reliabilities and heritabilities of three ERP components in healthy monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs.

Methods

ERP components (P300, P50 and MMN) were recorded using a 19-channel electroencephalogram (EEG) in 40 healthy monozygotic twin pairs, 19 of them on two separate occasions, and 30 dizygotic twin pairs. Zygosity was determined using DNA genotyping.

Results

High reliabilities were found for the P300 amplitude and its latency, MMN amplitude, and P50 suppression ratio components. Intra-class correlation (ICC) = 0.86 and 0.88 for the P300 amplitude and P300 latency respectively. Reliability of MMN peak amplitude and mean amplitude were 0.67 and 0.66 respectively. P50 T/C ratio reliability was 0.66. Model fitting analyses indicated a substantial heritability or familial component of variance for these ERP measures. Heritability estimates were 63 and 68% for MMN peak amplitude and mean amplitude respectively. For P50 T/C ratio, 68% heritability was estimated. P300 amplitude heritability was estimated at 69%, and while a significant familiality effect was found for P300 latency there was insufficient power to distinguish between shared environment and genetic factors.

Conclusions

The high reliability and heritability of the P300 amplitude, MMN amplitude, and P50 suppression ratio components supports their use as candidate endophenotypes for psychiatric research.

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Acknowledgments

We thank all twin pairs who participated in the study and Mr. Y. Nguyen and Mr. L. Drummond for technical help with EEG equipment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Social, Genetic Developmental Psychiatry Research Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, PO80, De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8AF, UK

    Mei Hua Hall, Frühling Rijsdijk & Pak Sham

  2. Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, London, UK

    Mei Hua Hall, Katja Schulze, Marco Picchioni, Elvira Bramon & Robin M. Murray

  3. Neuroimaging Research Group, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, London, UK

    Ulrich Ettinger

  4. Departments of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver, Colorado, USA

    Robert Freedman

  5. Department of Psychiatry, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Pak Sham

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  1. Mei Hua Hall
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  2. Katja Schulze
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  3. Frühling Rijsdijk
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  9. Pak Sham
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mei Hua Hall.

Additional information

Edited by Wendy Slutske

This study was supported by British Academy grant SG-36241 to UE and the Stanley Medical Research Institute. Mei Hua Hall is awarded the Taiwanese scholarship at King’s College London. Katja Schulze is supported by a Guy’s & St Thomas’ Charitable Foundation Research Studentship. Elvira Bramon and Marco Picchioni are Wellcome Trust fellows.

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Hall, M.H., Schulze, K., Rijsdijk, F. et al. Heritability and Reliability of P300, P50 and Duration Mismatch Negativity. Behav Genet 36, 845–857 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-006-9091-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-006-9091-6

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