Unravelling the genetic architecture of musical rhythm

Niarchou, M.; Sathirapongsasuti, J. F.; Jacoby, N.; Bell, E.; McArthur, E.; Straub, P.; The 23andMe Research Team,; McAuley, J. D.; Capra, J. A.; Ullen, F.; Creanza, N.; Mosing, M. A.; Hinds, D.; Davis, L. K.; Gordon, R. L.

doi:10.1101/836197

bioRxiv · 10.1101/836197

Unravelling the genetic architecture of musical rhythm

Niarchou, M.·Sathirapongsasuti, J. F.·Jacoby, N.·Bell, E.·McArthur, E.·Straub, P.·The 23andMe Research Team,·McAuley, J. D.·Capra, J. A.·Ullen, F.·Creanza, N.·Mosing, M. A.·Hinds, D.·Davis, L. K.·Gordon, R. L.

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Abstract

Moving in synchrony to the beat is a fundamental component of musicality. Here, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify common genetic variants associated with beat synchronization in 606,825 individuals. Beat synchronization exhibited a highly polygenic architecture, with sixty-nine loci reaching genome-wide significance (p<5x10-8) and SNP-based heritability (on the liability scale) of 13%-16%. Heritability was enriched for genes expressed in brain tissues, and for fetal and adult brain-specific gene regulatory elements, underscoring the role of central nervous system-expressed genes linked to the genetic basis of the trait. We performed validations of the self-report phenotype (through internet-based experiments) and of the GWAS (polygenic scores for beat synchronization were associated with patients algorithmically classified as musicians in medical records of a separate biobank). Genetic correlations with breathing function, motor function, processing speed, and chronotype suggest shared genetic architecture with beat synchronization and provide avenues for new phenotypic and genetic explorations.

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Niarchou, M., Sathirapongsasuti, J. F., Jacoby, N., Bell, E., McArthur, E., Straub, P., The 23andMe Research Team,, McAuley, J. D., Capra, J. A., Ullen, F., Creanza, N., Mosing, M. A., Hinds, D., Davis, L. K., Gordon, R. L.. 2019-11-09. Unravelling the genetic architecture of musical rhythm. https://doi.org/10.1101/836197

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