Genetic basis of partner choice

Qinwen Zheng; Sjoerd van Alten; Torkild Hovde Lyngstad; Edoardo Ciscato; Zhongxuan Sun; Jiacheng Miao; Yuchang Wu; Stephen Dorn; Boyan Zheng; Alexandra Havdahl; Elizabeth C. Corfield; Michel Guillaume Nivard; T. J. Galama; Patrick Turley; Pierre‐André Chiappori; Jason M. Fletcher; Qiongshi Lu

doi:10.1101/2025.02.03.636375

GeneticsbioRxivFeb 3, 2025

Preprint

Genetic basis of partner choice

Qinwen Zheng iD, Sjoerd van Alten iD, Torkild Hovde Lyngstad iD, Edoardo Ciscato iD, Zhongxuan Sun iD, Jiacheng Miao iD, Yuchang Wu iD, Stephen Dorn iD, Boyan Zheng iD, Alexandra Havdahl iD, Elizabeth C. Corfield iD, Michel Guillaume Nivard iD, T. J. Galama iD, Patrick Turley iD, Pierre‐André Chiappori iD, Jason M. Fletcher iD, Qiongshi Lu iD

Abstract

Previous genetic studies of human assortative mating have primarily focused on searching for its genomic footprint but have revealed limited insights into its biological and social mechanisms. Combining insights from the economics of the marriage market with advanced tools in statistical genetics, we perform the first genome-wide association study (GWAS) on a latent index for partner choice. Using 206,617 individuals from four global cohorts, we uncover phenotypic characteristics and social processes underlying assortative mating. We identify a broadly robust genetic component of the partner choice index between sexes and several countries and identify its genetic correlates. We also provide solutions to reduce assortative mating-driven biases in genetic studies of complex traits by conditioning GWAS summary statistics on the genetic associations with the latent partner choice index.

PDF DOI