Supplementary Material for: Positive Traits in the Bipolar Spectrum: The Space between Madness and Genius

Bipolar disorder is a severe, lifelong mood disorder for which little
is currently understood of the genetic mechanisms underlying risk. By
examining related dimensional phenotypes, we may further our
understanding of the disorder. Creativity has a historical connection
with the bipolar spectrum and is particularly enhanced among unaffected
first-degree relatives and those with bipolar spectrum traits. This
suggests that some aspects of the bipolar spectrum may confer
advantages, while more severe expressions of symptoms negatively
influence creative accomplishment. Creativity is a complex,
multidimensional construct with both cognitive and affective components,
many of which appear to reflect a shared genetic vulnerability with
bipolar disorder. It is suggested that a subset of bipolar risk variants
confer advantages as positive traits according to an inverted-U-shaped
curve with clinically unaffected allele carriers benefitting from the
positive traits and serving to maintain the risk alleles in the
population. The association of risk genes with creativity in healthy
individuals (e.g., NRG1), as well as an overall sharing of common
genetic variation between bipolar patients and creative individuals,
provides support for this model. Current findings are summarized from a
multidisciplinary perspective to demonstrate the feasibility of research
in this area to reveal the mechanisms underlying illness.