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

TLDR

Twin studies and other inheritance analyses indicate that same‑sex sexual behavior has a genetic component, yet prior gene‑searches lacked power to detect specific loci. The authors performed a genome‑wide association study of 493,001 participants from the United States, United Kingdom, and Sweden to identify genes linked to sexual orientation. The study uncovered multiple loci associated with same‑sex sexual behavior, confirming its polygenic nature. Ganna et al.

Abstract

The genetics of sexual orientation Twin studies and other analyses of inheritance of sexual orientation in humans has indicated that same-sex sexual behavior has a genetic component. Previous searches for the specific genes involved have been underpowered and thus unable to detect genetic signals. Ganna et al. perform a genome-wide association study on 493,001 participants from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Sweden to study genes associated with sexual orientation (see the Perspective by Mills). They find multiple loci implicated in same-sex sexual behavior indicating that, like other behavioral traits, nonheterosexual behavior is polygenic. Science , this issue p. eaat7693 ; see also p. 869