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Large-scale GWAS reveals insights into the genetic architecture of same-sex sexual behavior.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Type

Article

Change log

Authors

Abstract

Twin and family studies have shown that same-sex sexual behavior is partly genetically influenced, but previous searches for specific genes involved have been underpowered. We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on 477,522 individuals, revealing five loci significantly associated with same-sex sexual behavior. In aggregate, all tested genetic variants accounted for 8 to 25% of variation in same-sex sexual behavior, only partially overlapped between males and females, and do not allow meaningful prediction of an individual's sexual behavior. Comparing these GWAS results with those for the proportion of same-sex to total number of sexual partners among nonheterosexuals suggests that there is no single continuum from opposite-sex to same-sex sexual behavior. Overall, our findings provide insights into the genetics underlying same-sex sexual behavior and underscore the complexity of sexuality.

Description

Keywords

Datasets as Topic, Female, Genome-Wide Association Study, Homosexuality, Female, Homosexuality, Male, Humans, Male, Phenotype, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Quantitative Trait Loci, United Kingdom

Journal Title

Science

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

0036-8075
1095-9203

Volume Title

365

Publisher

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Rights

All rights reserved
Sponsorship
Medical Research Council (MC_UU_12015/2)