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Narcolepsy as a potential risk factor for Schizophrenia.

Reyhane Eghtedarian¹, Anniina M Tervi¹, Samuel E Jones¹

¹Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland, FIMM, HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.

Translational Psychiatry

|February 17, 2025

Summary

Narcolepsy may increase schizophrenia risk, with evidence of a bidirectional causal link. This study clarifies the psychiatric burden associated with narcolepsy.

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Psychiatry
Genetics

Background:

Narcolepsy is a severe sleep disorder characterized by fatigue, fragmented sleep, cataplexy, and hallucinations.
Previous studies suggested a link between narcolepsy and schizophrenia, but causality remained unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the causal relationship between narcolepsy and schizophrenia.
To estimate the comorbidity between these two conditions in a large population.

Main Methods:

Utilized data from the FinRegistry, encompassing 7.2 million individuals.
Employed Mendelian randomization and genome-wide association data to test causality.
Analyzed HLA-independent and HLA-including variants.

Main Results:

A robust causal association was found from narcolepsy to schizophrenia (P < 6.0 × 10^-4), strengthened by HLA locus inclusion (P < 4.48 × 10^-7).
Modest bidirectional causality was observed from schizophrenia to narcolepsy (P = 0.015).
No evidence of pleiotropy was detected.

Conclusions:

Narcolepsy may increase the risk of developing schizophrenia.
A bidirectional causal relationship exists between narcolepsy and schizophrenia.
The findings contribute to understanding the psychiatric burden in narcolepsy.