PhD Scientific Days 2025
Budapest, 7-9 July 2025
Mental Health Sciences I.
Investigating the genetic link between chronotype and depression
Name of the presenter
Gyorik Dorka
Institute/workplace of the presenter
Semmelweis University, Department of Pharmacodynamics; Semmelweis University, Doctoral College
Authors
Dorka Győrik1,2, Dóra Török1,3, Sándor Krause1,4, György Bagdy1,3, Gabriella Juhász1,3, Xénia Gonda3,5
1: Semmelweis University, Department of Pharmacodynamics
2: Semmelweis University, Doctoral College, Mental Health Sciences Division
3: Semmelweis University, NAP3.0-SE Neuropsychopharmacology Research Group- Hungarian Brain Research Program
4: Semmelweis University, Doctoral College
5: Semmelweis University, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Text of the abstract
Introduction: Understanding the genetic and neurobiological background of depression is crucial for improving diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. Chronotype is a circadian preference reflecting individual variability in the timing of sleep-wake cycles. Eveningness is also associated with impaired emotion regulation and cognitive vulnerability. Morningness, in contrast, is linked to more stable mood and lower risk for affective disorders. While the phenotypic association between chronotype and depression is well established, the genetic associations and causality are yet to be identified. Furthermore, both chronotype and psychiatric disorders show sex-specific effects, although the underlying biological mechanisms remain unclear.
Aim: We investigated the genetic background of chronotype and its effects on depression, and their interaction effects with childhood trauma.
Methods: After qualitiy control, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were run for morningness and eveningness chronotypes on subpopulations of the UKBiobank. Polygenic risk scores (PRS) were derived from SNPs associated with each chronotype using LDpred2, to quantify the individual-level genetic liability. To test for associations between chronotype PRSs, depression phenotypes and childhood trauma, regression models were run.
Result: Our GWA analyses yielded multiple genome-wide significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for both morningness and eveningness. PRSs calculated from SNPs associated with the morning phenotype significantly predicted lifetime depression as a main effect and in interaction with childhood trauma. However, PRS for eveningness was not significantly associated with depressive phenotypes.
Conclusion: Overall, our results confirm genetic association between morning chronotype and depression. Further investigation is needed to examine the causal pathways and molecular mechanisms linking circadian preference to mood disorders.
All authors declare no conflict of interest. This study was funded by NAP2022-I-4/2022, K143391, 2019-2.1.7-ERA-NET-2020-00005, TKP2021-EGA-25. DG was supported by EFOP-3.6.3-VEKOP-16-2017-00009.