Frontal Theta Helps to Explain Etiological Variability

Central tendency is overrated. Stereotyped, even. What are we missing when we neglect the breadth of data we collect? Like the adage of trash and treasure, sometimes noise is the signal. In a preregistered report in the current issue of Biological Psychiatry, Aydin et al. ( 1 Aydin Ü. Gyurkovics M. Ginestet C. Capp S. Greven C.U. Palmer J. McLoughlin G. Genetic overlap between midfrontal theta signals and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder in a longitudinal twin cohort. Biol Psychiatry. 2023; 94: 823-832 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Scopus (1) Google Scholar ) describe a heritable noisiness in brain-behavior relationships involved in the etiology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). SEE CORRESPONDING ARTICLE ON PAGE 823 SEE CORRESPONDING ARTICLE ON PAGE 823 Genetic Overlap Between Midfrontal Theta Signals and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder in a Longitudinal Twin CohortBiological PsychiatryVol. 94Issue 10PreviewCognitive control has been strongly linked to midfrontal theta (4–8 Hz) brain activity. Such control processes are known to be impaired in individuals with psychiatric conditions and neurodevelopmental diagnoses, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Temporal variability in theta, in particular, has been associated with ADHD, with shared genetic variance underlying the relationship. Here, we investigated the phenotypic and genetic relationships between theta phase variability, theta-related signals (the N2, error-related negativity, and error positivity), reaction time, and ADHD and ASD longitudinally in a large twin study of young adults to investigate the stability of the genetic relationships between these measures over time. Full-Text PDF Open Access