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Association of the NRG1 gene and schizophrenia: a meta-analysis

Molecular Psychiatry volume 11, pages 539–546 (2006)Cite this article

A Corrigendum to this article was published on 25 May 2006

Abstract

We investigated the association of the NRG1 gene and schizophrenia using meta-analytic techniques, combining all published data while restricting our analysis to studies investigating the most commonly reported single marker (SNP8NRG221533). We also investigated whether ancestry (European vs East Asian) and study design (family-based vs case–control) moderated any association. We found no evidence for an association of SNP8NRG221533 with schizophrenia, and significant between-study heterogeneity, which persisted when family-based studies were combined separately. However, when haplotype-based P-values were combined, there was evidence in support of an association of NRG1 with schizophrenia, and no evidence of between-study heterogeneity. Our meta-analysis provides support for the association of NRG1 with schizophrenia, but indicates that firmly establishing the role of NRG1 gene in schizophrenia by genetic association requires much larger sample sizes than have hitherto been reported. Association analyses and replications should take place at the level of the gene, rather than at the level of SNP, haplotype, or functional variant. Meta-analysis would then be carried out on the basis of the combination of P-values.

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Acknowledgements

Dawn Thiselton is an Essel Foundation NARSAD Young Investigator. Jonathan Flint is supported by the Wellcome Trust.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK

    M R Munafò

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Institute of Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

    D L Thiselton

  3. Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK

    T G Clark

  4. Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

    J Flint

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  2. D L Thiselton
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  4. J Flint
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Correspondence to M R Munafò.

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Munafò, M., Thiselton, D., Clark, T. et al. Association of the NRG1 gene and schizophrenia: a meta-analysis. Mol Psychiatry 11, 539–546 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.mp.4001817

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