Understanding risk for psychopathology through imaging gene–environment interactions

Examining the interplay of genes, experience and the brain is crucial to understanding psychopathology. We review the recent gene–environment interaction (G × E) and imaging genetics literature with the goal of developing models to bridge these approaches within single imaging gene–environment interaction (IG × E) studies. We explore challenges inherent in both G × E and imaging genetics and highlight studies that address these limitations. In specifying IG × E models, we examine statistical methods for combining these approaches, and explore plausible biological mechanisms (e.g. epigenetics) through which these conditional mechanisms can be understood. Finally, we discuss the potential contribution that IG × E studies can make to understanding psychopathology and developing more personalized and effective prevention and treatment.