Genetic and Evolutionary Contributions to the Etiology of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

AbstractWe review progress made concerning the participation of candidate genes in the determination of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity (ADHD) as well as recent evidence on its genetic determination based on molecular methodology. In addition to linkage analyses, we discuss recent results obtained through genome-wide association studies (GWAS). We also discuss the genetic comorbidity estimated between ADHD and major psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia (E), major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Furthermore, we examine both the geographical distribution of DRD4 and cross-ethnic variation of ADHD risk in Chilean children. Finally, visualizing ADHD from an evolutionary perspective, we suggest that behavioral traits such as hyperactivity, inattention, impulsivity, and sexual arousal, which play a role in ADHD could have had a high adaptive value during the early stages of the evolution ofHomo sapiens but turned progressively less adaptive and more recently definitively disadvantageous.Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is classified in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) as a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity. This disorder is often associated with school learning difficulties and adjustment problems in children and adolescents and psychotropic substance consumption, alcohol abuse and...
Source: Current Genetic Medicine Reports - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Source Type: research