Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

A Bivariate Twin Study of Regional Brain Volumes and Verbal and Nonverbal Intellectual Skills During Childhood and Adolescence

  • Original Research
  • Published:
Behavior Genetics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Twin studies indicate that both intelligence and brain structure are moderately to highly heritable. Recent bivariate studies of adult twins also suggest that intelligence and brain morphometry are influenced by shared genetic factors. The current study examines shared genetic and environmental factors between brain morphometry and intelligence in a sample of children and adolescents (twins, twin siblings, and singletons; n = 649, ages 4–19). To extend previous studies, brain morphometric data were parsed into subregions (lobar gray/white matter volumes, caudate nucleus, lateral ventricles) and intelligence into verbal and nonverbal skills (Wechsler Vocabulary and Block Design subtests). Phenotypic relationships between brain volumes and intelligence were small. Verbal skills shared unique environmental effects with gray matter volumes while nonverbal skills shared genetic effects with both global and regional gray and white matter. These results suggest that distinct mechanisms contribute to the small phenotypic relationships between brain volumes and verbal versus nonverbal intelligence.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Axelrod BN (2002) Validity of the Wechsler abbreviated scale of intelligence and other very short forms of estimating intellectual functioning. Assessment 9(1):17–23

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bates TC, Luciano M, Lind PA, Wright MJ, Montgomery GW, Martin NG (2008) Recently-derived variants of brain-size genes ASPM, MCPH1, CDK5RAP and BRCA1 not associated with general cognition, reading or language. Intelligence 36(6):689–693

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benjamini Y, Hochberg Y (1995) Controlling the false discovery rate: a practical and powerful approach to multiple testing. J R Stat Soc Series B Stat Methodol 57(1):289–300

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne B, Olson RK, Samuelsson S, Wadsworth S, Corley R, DeFries JC, Willcutt E (2006) Genetic and environmental influences on early literacy. J Res Reading 29(1):33–49

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carmelli D, Swan GE, DeCarli C, Reed T (2002) Quantitative genetic modeling of regional brain volumes and cognitive performance in older male twins. Biol Psychol 61(1–2):139–155

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Collins DL, Neelin P, Peters TM, Evans AC (1994) Automatic 3D intersubject registration of MR volumetric data in standardized Talairach space. J Comput Assist Tomogr 18(2):192–205

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Collins DL, Holmes CJ, Peters TM, Evans AC (1995) Automatic 3-D model-based neuroanatomical segmentation. Hum Brain Mapp 3(3):190–208

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Denckla MB (1985) Revised neurological examination for subtle signs. Psychopharmacol Bull 21(4):773–800

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards AWF (1984) Likelihood. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Flashman LA, Andreasen NC, Flaum M, Swayze VW (1998) Intelligence and regional brain volumes in normal controls. Intelligence 25(3):149–160

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Galton F (1869) Hereditary genius: an inquiry into its laws and consequences. Macmillan, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Geschwind DH, Miller BL, DeCarli C, Carmelli D (2002) Heritability of lobar brain volumes in twins supports genetic models of cerebral laterality and handedness. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 99(5):3176–3181

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Giedd JN, Blumenthal J, Jeffries NO, Castellanos FX, Liu H, Zijdenbos A, Paus T, Evans AC, Rapoport JL (1999) Brain development during childhood and adolescence: a longitudinal MRI study. Nat Neurosci 2(10):861–863

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Giedd JN, Lalonde FN, Celano MJ, White SL, Wallace GL, Lee NR, Lenroot RK (2009) Anatomical brain magnetic resonance imaging of typically developing children and adolescents. J Am Acad of Child Adolesc Psychiatry 48(5):465–470

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Haworth CM, Wright MJ, Luciano M, Martin NG, de Geus EJ, van Beijsterveldt CE, Bartels M, Posthuma D, Boomsma DI, Davis OS, Kovas Y, Corley RP, Defries JC, Hewitt JK, Olson RK, Rhea SA, Wadsworth SJ, Iacono WG, McGue M, Thompson LA, Hart SA, Petrill SA, Lubinski D, Plomin R (2009) The heritability of general cognitive ability increases linearly from childhood to young adulthood. Mol Psychiatry [Epub ahead of print]

  • Hollingshead AB, Redlich FC (1958) Social class and mental illness: a community study. Wiley, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Hulshoff Pol HE, Schnack HG, Posthuma D, Mandl RC, Baare WF, van Oel C, van Haren NE, Collins DL, Evans AC, Amunts K, Burgel U, Zilles K, de Geus E, Boomsma DI, Kahn RS (2006) Genetic contributions to human brain morphology and intelligence. J Neurosci 26(40):10235–10242

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lenroot RK, Gogtay N, Greenstein DK, Wells EM, Wallace GL, Clasen LS, Blumenthal JD, Lerch J, Zijdenbos AP, Evans AC, Thompson PM, Giedd JN (2007) Sexual dimorphism of brain developmental trajectories during childhood and adolescence. Neuroimage 36(4):1065–1073

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lerch JP, Worsley K, Shaw WP, Greenstein DK, Lenroot RK, Giedd J, Evans AC (2006) Mapping anatomical correlations across cerebral cortex (MACACC) using cortical thickness from MRI. Neuroimage 31(3):993–1003

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McDaniel MA (2005) Big-brained people are smarter: a meta-analysis of the relationship between in vivo brain volume and intelligence. Intelligence 33(4):337–346

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGue M, Bouchard TJ Jr, Iacono WG, Lykken DT (1993) Behavioral genetics of cognitive ability: a life-span perspective. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Nagy Z, Westerberg H, Klingberg T (2004) Maturation of white matter is associated with the development of cognitive functions during childhood. J Cogn Neurosci 16(7):1227–1233

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Neale M, Cardon L (1992) Methodology for genetic studies of twins and families. Kluwer, Dordrecht

    Google Scholar 

  • Neale MC, Boker SM, Xie G, Maes HH (2006) Mx: statistical modeling, 6th edn. Department of Psychiatry, Richmond, VA

  • Payton A (2006) Investigating cognitive genetics and its implications for the treatment of cognitive deficit. Genes Brain Behav 5:144–153

    Google Scholar 

  • Peper JS, Brouwer RM, Boomsma DI, Kahn RS, Hulshoff Pol HE (2007) Genetic influences on human brain structure: a review of brain imaging studies in twins. Hum Brain Mapp 28(6):464–473

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Plomin R, Craig I (1997) Human behavioral genetics of cognitive abilities and disabilities. BioEssays 19(12):1117–1124

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Plomin R, DeFries JC, McClearn GE, Rutter M (1997a) Behavioral genetics, 3rd edn. W.H. Freeman and Company, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Plomin R, Fulker DW, Corley R, DeFries JC (1997b) Nature, nurture, and cognitive development from 1 to 16 years: a parent-offspring adoption study. Psychol Sci 8(6):442–447

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Posthuma D, De Geus EJ, Baare WF, Hulshoff Pol HE, Kahn RS, Boomsma DI (2002) The association between brain volume and intelligence is of genetic origin. Nat Neurosci 5(2):83–84

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Posthuma D, Baare WF, Hulshoff Pol HE, Kahn RS, Boomsma DI, De Geus EJ (2003) Genetic correlations between brain volumes and the WAIS-III dimensions of verbal comprehension, working memory, perceptual organization, and processing speed. Twin Res 6(2):131–139

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sattler JM (1992) Assessment of children: revised and updated, 3rd edn. Jerome M. Sattler Publisher, Inc., San Diego, CA

    Google Scholar 

  • Schmitt JE, Eyler LT, Giedd JN, Kremen WS, Kendler KS, Neale MC (2007) Review of twin and family studies on neuroanatomic phenotypes and typical neurodevelopment. Twin Res Hum Genet 10(5):683–694

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schmitt JE, Lenroot RK, Wallace GL, Ordaz S, Taylor KN, Kabani N, Greenstein D, Lerch JP, Kendler KS, Neale MC, Giedd JN (2008) Identification of genetically mediated cortical networks: a multivariate study of pediatric twins and siblings. Cereb Cortex 18(8):1737–1747

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shaw P (2007) Intelligence and the developing human brain. Bioessays 29(10):962–973

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shaw P, Greenstein D, Lerch J, Clasen L, Lenroot R, Gogtay N, Evans A, Rapoport J, Giedd J (2006) Intellectual ability and cortical development in children and adolescents. Nature 440(7084):676–679

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sled JG, Zijdenbos AP, Evans AC (1998) A nonparametric method for automatic correction of intensity nonuniformity in MRI data. IEEE Trans Med Imaging 17(1):87–97

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Thompson PM, Cannon TD, Narr KL, van Erp T, Poutanen VP, Huttunen M, Lonnqvist J, Standertskjold-Nordenstam CG, Kaprio J, Khaledy M, Dail R, Zoumalan CI, Toga AW (2001) Genetic influences on brain structure. Nat Neurosci 4(12):1253–1258

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wallace GL, Eric Schmitt J, Lenroot R, Viding E, Ordaz S, Rosenthal MA, Molloy EA, Clasen LS, Kendler KS, Neale MC, Giedd JN (2006) A pediatric twin study of brain morphometry. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 47(10):987–993

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1967) Wechsler preschool and primary scale of intelligence. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1974) Wechsler intelligence scale for children-R. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1981) Wechsler adult intelligence scale-revised. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1989) Wechsler preschool and primary scale of intelligence-revised. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1991) Wechsler intelligence scale for children, 3rd edn. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (1999) Wechsler abbreviated scale of intelligence. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Wechsler D (2002) Wechsler preschool and primary scale of intelligence, 3rd edn. The Psychological Corporation, San Antonio

    Google Scholar 

  • Zijdenbos AP, Forghani R, Evans AC (2002) Automatic “pipeline” analysis of 3-D MRI data for clinical trials: application to multiple sclerosis. IEEE Trans Med Imaging 21(10):1280–1291

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Intramural Research Program of the NIH, National Institute of Mental Health (GW, NRL, LSC, RL, JG), extramural grant funding from the NIH (MH-20030; EP-W, SEM, JES, MCN), and an NHMRC Australia, Sidney Sax Public Fellowship (443036; SEM). We would like to express our gratitude to the individuals who volunteered their time to contribute to this research.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Child Psychiatry Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bldg. 10, 4C110, MSC-1367; 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD, 20892-1600, USA

    Gregory L. Wallace, Nancy Raitano Lee, Rhoshel K. Lenroot, Liv S. Clasen & Jay N. Giedd

  2. Virginia Institute for Psychiatric and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA

    Elizabeth C. Prom-Wormley, Sarah E. Medland, James E. Schmitt & Michael C. Neale

  3. Genetic Epidemiology Unit, Queensland Institute of Medical Research, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Sarah E. Medland

Authors
  1. Gregory L. Wallace
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Nancy Raitano Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Elizabeth C. Prom-Wormley
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Sarah E. Medland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Rhoshel K. Lenroot
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Liv S. Clasen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. James E. Schmitt
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Michael C. Neale
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Jay N. Giedd
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gregory L. Wallace.

Additional information

Edited by William Kremen.

Gregory L. Wallace and Nancy Raitano Lee contributed equally as first authors. Elizabeth C. Prom-Wormley and Sarah E. Medland contributed equally as co-authors.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Wallace, G.L., Lee, N.R., Prom-Wormley, E.C. et al. A Bivariate Twin Study of Regional Brain Volumes and Verbal and Nonverbal Intellectual Skills During Childhood and Adolescence. Behav Genet 40, 125–134 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-009-9329-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-009-9329-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation