Shared Genomic Architectures of COVID-19 and Antisocial Behavior

Little is known about the genetics of norm violation and aggression (ASB) in relation to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). To investigate this, we used summary statistics from genome-wide association studies and linkage disequilibrium score regression to calculate a matrix of genetic correlations (r_gs) for ASB, COVID-19, and various health and behavioral traits. After false-discovery rate correction, ASB was genetically correlated with COVID-19 (r_g = 0.51; P = 1.54E-02) and 19 other traits. ASB and COVID-19 were both positively genetically correlated with having a noisy workplace, doing heavy manual labor, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and genitourinary diseases. ASB and COVID-19 were both inversely genetically correlated with average income, education years, healthspan, verbal reasoning, lifespan, cheese intake, and being breastfed as a baby. But keep in mind that r_gs are not necessarily causal. And, if causal, their prevailing directions of effect (which causes which) are indiscernible from r_gs alone. Moreover, the SNP-heritability <inline-formula><alternatives><inline-graphic xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xlink:href="21265145v2_inline1.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula> estimates for both measures of COVID-19 were very low, restricting the overlap of genetic variance in absolute terms between the two traits. Nonetheless, our findings suggest that those with antisocial tendencies possibly have a higher risk of exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) than those without antisocial tendencies. This may have been especially true early in the pandemic before vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 were available and before the emergence of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.