background A section of the umcg Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department is currently focusing much of its research on tic disorders.
aim To provide an overview of the research projects on tic disorders being currently undertaken at our center.
method We discuss our research projects giving particular attention to factors that are restricting current research.
results The first project is tic Genetics, a project involving international collaboration. The researchers are looking for rare genetic variants in several family members who have tics and for new gene mutations in children who have tics but no family history of tics. tic Genetics also investigates the interactions between genes and the environment. A second large-scale longitudinal project, the European Multicentre Tics in Children Study (emtics), is focusing on the interplay between genetics, auto-immunity, and environmental factors as a possible cause for the onset and exacerbation of tics. Finally, ts-eurotrain is a European collaboration that concentrates on genetics, neuro-imaging and animal models.
conclusion International collaborations are essential if we are to acquire a deeper understanding of the etiology of tic disorders.