Childhood psychiatric disorders demonstrate a discernable developmental chronology; certain juvenile anxiety disorders typically onset earlier than behavioral disorders, which typically onset earlier than affective disorders. Childhood anxiety disorders therefore represent one of the earliest expressions of psychopathologic risk. The relevance of early onset anxiety disorders for consequent juvenile and adult mental health is, however, poorly understood. Developmental genetic epidemiology provides a framework for identifying the continuities and discontinuities in genetic and environmental risk factor effects on the chronology of comorbidity by exploiting the information contained in the pattern of disorder overlap within and across time, within individuals and between relatives of different ages. We plan to analyze longitudinal data already collected at personal interview with a large population-based sample of juvenile twins and their parents to develop a detailed understanding of the developmental genetic epidemiology of the more common juvenile anxiety disorders (separation anxiety, overanxious disorder, phobias). Analyses of multi-wave data collected from an epidemiologic sample of twin-families will permit identification of (1) the genetic, familial environmental and individual-specific environmental influences on transient versus persistent disorder, (2) the continuity or discontinuity of these risk factors with those for contemporaneous and consequent risk for other anxiety, behavioral and affective disorders, and (3) the maternal and paternal psychiatric disorders associated with the familial transmission of risk. Identification of the genetic and environmental risk factors that underlie developmental trajectories and endpoints of early juvenile psychopathology will guide intervention and prevention efforts designed to minimize the progression and chronicity of mental disorders.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01MH060324-03
Application #
6538990
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-SNEM-2 (01))
Program Officer
Moldin, Steven Owen
Project Start
2000-07-01
Project End
2004-06-30
Budget Start
2002-07-01
Budget End
2004-06-30
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2002
Total Cost
$104,754
Indirect Cost
Name
Virginia Commonwealth University
Department
Genetics
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
City
Richmond
State
VA
Country
United States
Zip Code
23298
Foley, Debra L; Rowe, Richard; Maes, Hermine et al. (2008) The relationship between separation anxiety and impairment. J Anxiety Disord 22:635-41
Foley, Debra L; Goldston, David B; Costello, E Jane et al. (2006) Proximal psychiatric risk factors for suicidality in youth: the Great Smoky Mountains Study. Arch Gen Psychiatry 63:1017-24
Foley, Debra L; Rutter, M; Angold, A et al. (2005) Making sense of informant disagreement for overanxious disorder. J Anxiety Disord 19:193-210
Eaves, Lindon; Silberg, Judy; Foley, Debra et al. (2004) Genetic and environmental influences on the relative timing of pubertal change. Twin Res 7:471-81
Foley, Debra; Rutter, Michael; Pickles, Andrew et al. (2004) Informant disagreement for separation anxiety disorder. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 43:452-60
Foley, Debra L; Pickles, Andrew; Rutter, Michael et al. (2004) Risks for conduct disorder symptoms associated with parental alcoholism in stepfather families versus intact families from a community sample. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 45:687-96
Foley, Debra L; Neale, Michael C; Gardner, Charles O et al. (2003) Major depression and associated impairment: same or different genetic and environmental risk factors? Am J Psychiatry 160:2128-33
Eaves, Lindon; Foley, Debra; Silberg, Judy (2003) Has the ""Equal Environments"" assumption been tested in twin studies? Twin Res 6:486-9
Foley, D L; Thacker 2nd, L R; Aggen, S H et al. (2001) Pregnancy and perinatal complications associated with risks for common psychiatric disorders in a population-based sample of female twins. Am J Med Genet 105:426-31
Foley, D L; Neale, M C; Kendler, K S (2001) Genetic and environmental risk factors for depression assessed by subject-rated symptom check list versus structured clinical interview. Psychol Med 31:1413-23

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