Gene discovery and polygenic prediction from a genome-wide association study of educational attainment in 1.1 million individuals

23andMe Research Team, COGENT (Cognitive Genomics Consortium), Social Science Genetic Association Consortium

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1460 Scopus citations

Abstract

Here we conducted a large-scale genetic association analysis of educational attainment in a sample of approximately 1.1 million individuals and identify 1,271 independent genome-wide-significant SNPs. For the SNPs taken together, we found evidence of heterogeneous effects across environments. The SNPs implicate genes involved in brain-development processes and neuron-to-neuron communication. In a separate analysis of the X chromosome, we identify 10 independent genome-wide-significant SNPs and estimate a SNP heritability of around 0.3% in both men and women, consistent with partial dosage compensation. A joint (multi-phenotype) analysis of educational attainment and three related cognitive phenotypes generates polygenic scores that explain 11–13% of the variance in educational attainment and 7–10% of the variance in cognitive performance. This prediction accuracy substantially increases the utility of polygenic scores as tools in research.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1112-1121
Number of pages10
JournalNature Genetics
Volume50
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 1 2018

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Genetics

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