Study highlights critical diversity gap in psychiatric genomics research microbiologystudy

A study led by the Latin American Genomics Consortium (LAGC), a pioneering collaborative network co-founded and co-led by Janitza Montalvo-Ortiz, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychiatry, reveals a significant disparity in psychiatric genomics research, with more than 85% of participants in genome-wide association studies being of European ancestry.

This imbalance severely limits our understanding of how genetic factors influence mental health conditions across diverse populations, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean—regions characterized by unique genetic admixtures and distinct environmental factors.

The research was published in Nature Genetics, and Montalvo-Ortiz is senior author. It emphasizes that this lack of genetic diversity not only hinders scientific progress but also threatens equitable access to precision psychiatry.

As mental health disorders continue to pose a significant global burden, the authors call for urgent inclusion of understudied populations to ensure that advances in psychiatric genomics benefit all communities.

The study provides a comprehensive roadmap for addressing these gaps, recommending strategies to promote equity and inclusion in psychiatric genomic research that could transform mental health care delivery in underrepresented regions worldwide.

LAGC is leading efforts to address this critical research gap. Uniting expertise from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, the U.S., and other nations, the consortium is building the first large-scale, population-specific genetic database focused on psychiatric disorders in Latin American populations.

By leveraging the region’s unique genetic diversity—shaped by Indigenous American, European, and African ancestries—the LAGC aims to uncover novel genetic insights that could lead to more effective, culturally appropriate mental health interventions while ensuring that advances in precision psychiatry become accessible to all communities, regardless of ancestry.

The LAGC’s ambitious aims extend beyond data collection to fundamentally reshape psychiatric research in the region. The consortium focuses on developing standardized protocols for collecting phenotypic and genetic data that account for the complex admixture patterns present in Latin American populations.

Key objectives include identifying population-specific genetic risk factors and building informative polygenic risk scores for major psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression; exploring how environmental factors unique to the region interact with genetic predispositions; and building sustainable research capacity through training programs for local scientists.

Through these multifaceted efforts, the consortium seeks to reduce health care disparities and develop targeted interventions that address the specific mental health needs of Latin American populations.