14 DAY TRIAL // For a long time, scientists have suspected that certain genes play an important role in the development of bipolar disorders, but evidence to support this claim has been hard to come by. Now, researchers at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) announce significant progress in this regard.
For this investigation, scientists used data from a wide variety of sources – including brain imaging, cognitive testing, and temperament and behavior tests – rather than simply sticking to analyzing clinical symptoms. The team identified around 50 brain and behavioral measures involved in BPD.
“The genetic causes of bipolar disorder are highly complex and likely involve many different genes. The field of psychiatric genetics has long struggled to find an effective approach to begin dissecting the genetic basis of bipolar disorder,” says researcher Carrie Bearden, PhD, quoted by PsychCentral.
The investigator holds an appointment as an associate professor of psychiatry and psychology at the UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. She was also the senior author of a new paper detailing the findings, which was published in a recent issue of the journal JAMA Psychiatry.