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Mx Scripts Library: Structural Equation Modeling Scripts for Twin and Family Data

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Abstract

Structural equation modeling (SEM) provides a flexible tool to carry out genetic analyses of family and twin data. The basic model which decomposes the variance between and within families for a particular trait into genetic and non-genetic components can be generalized to multivariate and/ or longitudinal data, incorporate sex differences in parameter estimates, and model the effects of measured environment, candidate genes or DNA marker data. We introduce a web-based library (http://www.psy.vu.nl/mxbib) of scripts for uni- and multivariate genetic epidemiological analyses, as well as for linkage and genetic association tests. The scripts are written to be used with the freely available software package Mx and provide a flexible and uniform approach to the analysis of data from relatives.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Psychology, Vrije Universiteit, Van der Boechorststraat 1, 1081, BT, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    D Posthuma & D. I. Boomsma

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  1. D Posthuma
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  2. D. I. Boomsma
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Correspondence to D Posthuma.

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Posthuma, D., Boomsma, D. Mx Scripts Library: Structural Equation Modeling Scripts for Twin and Family Data. Behav Genet 35, 499–505 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-005-2791-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10519-005-2791-5

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