a more general shared underlying liability to both disorders. Studies of psychiatric disorders have shown that bipolar disorder and alcoholism commonly co-occur37–39, and that individuals with bipolar disorder have a greater likelihood of AUDs than the general population40. Approximately 46% of subjects with bipolar disorder type I have AUDs, while 39% of subjects with a less severe form of mania, bipolar disorder II, have an AUDs37–39. The association of C15orf53 with SC detected in this study suggests the possibility of a specific genetic link between bipolar disorder and alcoholism.
