Rare copy number variants in males and females with childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

While childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is more prevalent in males than females, genetic contributors to this effect have not been established. Here, we explore sex differences in the contribution of common and/or rare genetic variants to ADHD. Participants were from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study (N = 1253 youth meeting DSM-5 criteria for ADHD [mean age = 11.46 years [SD = 0.87]; 31% female] and 5577 unaffected individuals [mean age = 11.42 years [SD = 0.89]; 50% female], overall 66% White, non-Hispanic (WNH), 19% Black/African American, and 15% other races. Logistic regression tested for interactions between sex (defined genotypically) and both rare copy number variants (CNV) and polygenic (common variant) risk in association with ADHD. There was a significant interaction between sex and the presence of a CNV deletion larger than 200 kb, both in the entire cohort (β = −0.74, CI = [−1.27 to −0.20], FDR-corrected p = 0.048) and, at nominal significance levels in the WNH ancestry subcohort (β = −0.86, CI = [−1.51 to −0.20], p = 0.010). Additionally, the number of deleted genes interacted with sex in association with ADHD (whole cohort. β = −0.13, CI = [−0.23 to −0.029], FDR-corrected p = 0.048; WNH. β = −0.17, CI = [−0.29 to −0.050], FDR-corrected p = 0.044) as did the total length of CNV deletions (whole cohort. β = −0.12, CI = [−0.19 to −0.044], FDR-corrected p = 0.028; WNH. β = −0.17, CI = [−0.28 to −0.061], FDR-corrected p = 0.034). This sex effect was driven by increased odds of childhood ADHD for females but not males in the presence of CNV deletions. No similar sex effect was found for CNV duplications or polygenic risk scores. The association between CNV deletions and ADHD was partially mediated by measures of cognitive flexibility. In summary, CNV deletions were associated with increased odds for childhood ADHD in females, but not males.