Gene

Heritability

Cognitive psychology

Neuroscience

Biology

Cognition

Psychiatry

Developmental psychology

Twin study

Single-nucleotide polymorphism

Developmental psychopathology

Genetics

Schizophrenia (object-oriented programming)

Psychology

Genome-wide association study

Genotype

Clinical psychology

Psychopathology

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

Twin studies in schizophrenia have been crucial in establishing estimates for the heritability and thus providing evidence for a genetic component in this disorder. Recent years have seen the application of the twin study paradigm to both putative intermediate phenotypes and biomarkers of disease as well as a diversification of its use in schizophrenia research. This review addressed studies of brain structure (T1 morphometry) and cognition in schizophrenia using twin study designs. We review major findings such as the overlap of genetic variance between schizophrenia and cognition as a model for the emergence of psychopathology. The use of novel hybrid models integrating molecular genetic risk markers, as well as the use of twin studies in epigenetics might prove to significantly enhance schizophrenia research in the post-GWAS era.

Twin studies of brain structure and cognition in schizophrenia