What is an intermediate phenotype?
An intermediate phenotype is a biological trait that is related to genetic factors that increase risk for an illness but do not necessarily result in symptoms of the illness itself. In this sense, it represents an intermediate “step” in a pathway from genes associated with risk for an illness to the clinical signs and symptoms of the illness. Because intermediate phenotypes occur in patients and in some of their relatives who do not have these illnesses, studying these traits in both patients and unaffected family members may help us understand the genetic and biological factors associated with risk for these illnesses. With a better understanding of the steps leading from specific genes to symptoms, we hope to be able to d evelop better treatments to improve the lives of patients who suffer with these illnesses. Who is eligible to participate in the B-SNIP study? Because this program is interested in measuring risk for schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder, we
