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Rapid Fractionation and Isolation of Whole Blood Components in Samples Obtained from a Community-based Setting

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Cornelius A Rietveld¹, David Cesarini, Daniel J Benjamin

¹Department of Applied Economics, Erasmus School of Economics, Erasmus University, 3062 PA Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|May 28, 2013

Summary

Genetic factors influence subjective well-being (SWB), but common genetic variants explain only a small portion of its variance. Future research with larger samples may identify specific genetic contributors to SWB.

Keywords:

GCTA GREML happiness

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Area of Science:

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Psychology
Psychiatry

Background:

Subjective well-being (SWB) is a significant area of research in social sciences.
Previous twin and family studies suggest genetic factors account for 30-40% of SWB variance.
The specific genetic architecture of SWB remains incompletely understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To estimate the common narrow heritability of SWB in a large, unrelated sample.
To investigate the contribution of common genetic polymorphisms to SWB.
To assess the potential for discovering genetic variants associated with SWB.

Main Methods:

Utilized a pooled sample of approximately 11,500 unrelated, genotyped individuals from Sweden and the Netherlands.
Applied a novel method to estimate common narrow heritability.
Analyzed single-question survey measures of SWB.

Main Results:

Common narrow heritability estimates for SWB ranged from 5-10%.
After correcting for measurement error, heritability estimates increased to 12-18%.
These findings indicate a modest contribution from common genetic variants.

Conclusions:

The common narrow heritability of SWB is not substantial.
Sufficiently large sample sizes are necessary to identify specific genetic polymorphisms influencing SWB.
Genetic data holds potential for future SWB research, warranting guarded optimism.