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In a landmark research study, scientists have unveiled the results of a comprehensive genome-wide association study (GWAS), published in Nature Genetics, shedding new light on the genetic factors underlying cannabis use disorders (CanUD) and their potential link to lung cancer.

If you have a family member that suffers from depression, chances are you may have more than one. Doctors often say “depression runs in families,” but scientists really had no good idea how—until a major analysis of the genomes of 200,000 military veterans uncovered the 178 genes that influence your risk of major depression. Science Friday producer Katie Feather talked to Dr. Daniel Levey, assistant professor of psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine. He explains why there are so many associated genes, and more about the massive database that helped scientists find them.

A Yale-led analysis of the genomes of more than 1 million people has shed light on the underlying biology of cannabis use disorder and associated risks.

Erectile dysfunction has complex biological and psychological causes. In a recent study published in Nature Communications, Yale authors Uri Bright, PhD; Joel Gelernter, MD; and colleagues performed cross-ancestry genome-wide association studies and identified multiple risk loci, highlighting SIM1 as a key genetic regulator of erectile function across populations.

Daniel Levey, PhD; Hang Zhou, PhD, Joseph Deak, PhD; and Joel Gelernter, MD, are co-authors of the study, "Alcohol Use and Risk of Dementia in Diverse Populations: Evidence from Cohort, Case–Control and Mendelian Randomisation Approaches" in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine.

A new study led by researchers at the Yale School of Medicine and the VA Connecticut Healthcare System provides the most comprehensive analysis to date of genetic, psychiatric, and environmental factors that shape risk for alcohol use disorder. Yale authors are Peter Na, MD, MPH; Joseph Deak, PhD; Daniel Levey, PhD; Robert Pietrzak, PhD, MPH; and Joel Gelernter, MD.

The benefits of exercise and its positive influence on physical and mental health are well documented, but a new Yale and VA Connecticut study sheds light on the role genetics plays for physical activity, accounting for some of the differences between individuals and showing differences in biology for physical activity at leisure versus physical activity at work and at home.

A genome-wide analyses in Nature Genetics identified 30 independent loci associated with obsessive–compulsive disorder, highlighting genetic overlap with other psychiatric disorders and implicating putative effector genes and cell types contributing to its etiology. Marco Galimberti, PhD, associate research scientist, is co-first author.