Cited by 226Genomic variations and chromosomal abnormalitiesSchizophrenia research and treatmentGenetic Associations and Epidemiology

Cognitive Performance Among Carriers of Pathogenic Copy Number Variants: Analysis of 152,000 UK Biobank Subjects

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Kendall, Kimberley M., Rees, Elliott, Escott-Price, Valentina, Einon, Mark, Thomas, Rhys, Hewitt, Jonathan, O’Donovan, Michael C., Owen, Michael J. +2 more·2017·Biological Psychiatry

Abstract

Background The UK Biobank is a unique resource for biomedical research, with extensive phenotypic and genetic data on half a million adults from the general population. We aimed to examine the effect of neurodevelopmental copy number variants (CNVs) on the cognitive performance of participants.Methods We used Affymetrix Power Tools and PennCNV-Affy software to analyze Affymetrix microarrays of the first 152,728 genotyped individuals. We annotated a list of 93 CNVs and compared their frequencies with control datasets. We analyzed the performance on seven cognitive tests of carriers of 12 CNVs associated with schizophrenia (n = 1087) and of carriers of another 41 neurodevelopmental CNVs (n = 484).Results The frequencies of the 93 CNVs in the Biobank subjects were remarkably similar to those among 26,628 control subjects from other datasets. Carriers of schizophrenia-associated CNVs and of the group of 41 other neurodevelopmental CNVs had impaired performance on the cognitive tests, with nine of 14 comparisons remaining statistically significant after correction for multiple testing. They also had lower educational and occupational attainment (p values between 10-7 and 10-18). The deficits in cognitive performance were modest (Z score reductions between 0.01 and 0.51), compared with individuals with schizophrenia in the Biobank (Z score reductions between 0.35 and 0.90).Conclusions This is the largest study on the cognitive phenotypes of CNVs to date. Adult carriers of neurodevelopmental CNVs from the general population have significant cognitive deficits. The UK Biobank will allow unprecedented opportunities for analysis of further phenotypic consequences of CNVs.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.08.014

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  • The 15q11.2 deletion is significantly enriched in the SJCHU CMA database (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.5 to 2.4) compared with UK Biobank.

    “The deletion is significantly enriched in the SJCHU (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.5 to 2.4) and OUH CMA database (OR 3.1, 95% CI 1.6 to 5.7), compared with the deletion prevalence from the UK BIOBANK (0.36%, 544/151619)16 (table 2).”

    From Estimating the effect size of the 15Q11.2 BP1–BP2 deletion and its contribution to neurodevelopmental symptoms: recommendations for practice (2019) · cites this paper as [16]

    The Results report 151,659 UK Biobank samples passing quality control, and the CNV Calling Criteria include 15q11.2 deletions. But our copy does not give the cited deletion prevalence of 0.36% (544/151,619) or the SJCHU comparison and odds ratio; it directs readers to a separate Excel file for locus-specific frequencies (CNV Breakpoints and Frequencies, Table S2). The citation is attached to the UK Biobank baseline, not clearly to the citing authors’ enrichment calculation. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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  • The 15q11.2 deletion is significantly enriched in the OUH CMA database (OR 3.1, 95% CI 1.6 to 5.7) compared with UK Biobank.

    “The deletion is significantly enriched in the SJCHU (OR 1.9, 95% CI 1.5 to 2.4) and OUH CMA database (OR 3.1, 95% CI 1.6 to 5.7), compared with the deletion prevalence from the UK BIOBANK (0.36%, 544/151619)16 (table 2).”

    From Estimating the effect size of the 15Q11.2 BP1–BP2 deletion and its contribution to neurodevelopmental symptoms: recommendations for practice (2019) · cites this paper as [16]

    The Results and the section describing Table S2 establish that the paper measured CNV frequencies in UK Biobank, including the 15q11.2 deletion listed in the CNV Calling Criteria. Our copy does not give the cited deletion prevalence of 0.36% (544/151619), and it does not report an OUH CMA comparison or the stated odds ratio and confidence interval. In the citing sentence, the reference appears next to the UK Biobank prevalence, not the authors’ OUH enrichment result. (LLM, conf=0.83)

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  • The UK Biobank data used as control is from an unselected population (151,619 individuals).

    “We used data on CNV frequency from the UK BIOBANK (151 619 individuals),16 which is an unselected population.”

    From Estimating the effect size of the 15Q11.2 BP1–BP2 deletion and its contribution to neurodevelopmental symptoms: recommendations for practice (2019) · cites this paper as [16]

    Methods and Materials says UK Biobank participants were recruited without exclusion criteria, supporting the description of an unselected sample. However, Methods and Materials and Results report 151,659 samples passing quality control, not 151,619. The Discussion also cautions that the sample is not fully representative of the general population. (LLM, conf=0.90)

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  • The 15q11.2 duplication is used as a control neutral CNV throughout the study.

    “The reciprocal duplication is not enriched in both the SJCHU and OUH cohorts (table 2) when using the prevalence in an unselected population provided by the UK BIOBANK (0.5%, 762/151619)16 and is therefore used as a control neutral CNV throughout the rest of this study.”
  • The reciprocal 15q11.2 duplication is not enriched in the SJCHU and OUH cohorts when using UK Biobank prevalence (0.5%).

    “The reciprocal duplication is not enriched in both the SJCHU and OUH cohorts (table 2) when using the prevalence in an unselected population provided by the UK BIOBANK (0.5%, 762/151619)16 and is therefore used as a control neutral CNV throughout the rest of this study.”

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Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. American Psychiatric Association (1994): Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Washington DC: American Psychiatric Press.
  2. George D, Mallery P (2010): SPSS for Windows Step by Step: A Simple Guide and Reference (17.0 update). 10a ed. Boston: Pearson.

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Authors
Kendall, K. M., Rees, E., Escott-Price, V., Einon, M., Thomas, R., Hewitt, J., O’Donovan, M. C., Owen, M. J., Walters, J. T. R., & Kirov, G.
Affiliations
  • Cardiff University (GB)
  • University Hospital Llandough (GB)
Corresponding author
Kirov, George
Venue
Biological Psychiatry
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2017-07
Volume
82
Issue
2
Pages
103-110
ISSN
0006-3223 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2513914028
Cited by
226
References
32
Citations by year
2026: 18 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 29 · 2022: 36 · 2021: 30 · 2020: 18 · 2019: 31 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 8
FWCI
15.60
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Biological Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • ORCA Online Research @Cardiff (Cardiff University) (acceptedVersion)
  • ORCA Online Research @Cardiff (Cardiff University) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
  • Newcastle University ePrints (Newcastle Univesity)
Funders
  • Wellcome Trust (201171/Z/16/Z)
  • Cardiff University (MR/L010305/1, G0800509)
  • Medical Research Council (MR/L023784/2, MR/P005748/1, MR/L010305/1, G0800509, MR/L023784/1, No. MR/L010305/1)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Genomic variations and chromosomal abnormalities
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Genetic Associations and Epidemiology
Keywords
copy number variation, neurodevelopmental disorders, cognitive performance, schizophrenia, educational attainment, occupational attainment, UK Biobank, cognitive impairment
MeSH terms
Adult, Aged, Female, United Kingdom, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Neuropsychological Tests, Schizophrenia, Biological Specimen Banks, DNA Copy Number Variations, Cognitive Dysfunction, Neurodevelopmental Disorders

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