Electrophysiological resting-state signatures link polygenic scores to general intelligence
Intelligence is associated with important life outcomes. Behavioral, genetic, structural, and functional brain correlates of intelligence have been studied for decades, but questions remain as to how genetics are related to trait expression and what intermediary role brain properties play. This study investigated these mediations in a representative sample of 434 individuals, comprising young and older adults. Polygenic scores (PGS) for intelligence were calculated. Resting-state EEG recordings were analyzed using graph theory quantifying functional connectivity across different frequencies. We tested whether global and local graph metrics like efficiency and clustering mediated the association between PGS and intelligence. PGS significantly predicted variance in intelligence and were related to frequency-specific graph metrics in areas predominantly located in parieto-frontal regions, which in turn were associated with intelligence. These findings, based on the first study linking PGS to intelligence using EEG-derived graph metrics, identify candidate pathways through which genetic variation may shape intelligence, providing a foundation for future hypothesis-driven investigations. Data for this study were collected as part of the Dortmund Vital Study ( https://www.researchprotocols.org/2022/3/e32352 ; ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT05155397).
Authors
- Michael Burke (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8516-9889)
- Dorothea Metzen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4250-0076)
- Jan Digutsch (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1320-8869)
- Christoph Fraenz
- Erhan Genç (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6514-5479)
- Robert Kumsta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6006-6958)
- Carsten Watzl (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5195-0995)
- Edmund Wascher (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3616-9767)
- Stephan Getzmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6382-0183)
- Jan Georg Hengstler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1427-5246)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5882-3200)
- Michael A. Nitsche (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2207-5965)
- Daniel Schneider (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2867-2613)
- Christina Stammen
- Patrick D. Gajewski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8240-1702)
- Jörg Reinders (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1025-7849)
- Stefan Arnau (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8858-4287)
- Fabian Streit (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1080-4339)
- Manuel C. Voelkle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5576-8103)
- Javier Schneider Penate
- Rebecca Engler
Institutions
- TU Dortmund University (DE)
- University of St.Gallen (CH)
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- University Hospital Heidelberg (DE)
- Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum (DE)
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (DE)
- MSH Medical School Hamburg – University of Applied Sciences and Medical University (DE)
- Central Institute of Mental Health (DE)
- University of Applied Sciences St. Gallen (CH)
- Cooperative Educational Service Agencies (US)
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (DE)
- Bethel University (US)
- Ruhr University Bochum (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Scientific Reports
- Published
- 2025-11-21
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-26778-4
- Primary Topic
- Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00