Testing associations between human anxiety and genes previously implicated by mouse anxiety models

• DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12851
• Publication Date: 2023-06-01T06:41:40Z
• Authors: Maizy S. Brasher; Travis J. Mize; Aimee L. Thomas; Charles A. Hoeffer; Marissa A. Ehringer; Luke M. Evans
• Keywords: Genetic Association; Association (psychology); Candidate gene; Genome-wide Association Study

Abstract Anxiety disorders are common and can be debilitating, with effective treatments remaining hampered by an incomplete understanding of the underlying genetic etiology. Improvements have been made in influences on mouse behavioral models anxiety, yet it is unclear extent to which genes identified these experimental systems contribute variation human anxiety phenotypes. Leveraging new existing large‐scale genome‐wide association studies, we tested whether sets previously anxiety‐like behavior studies a range disorders. When as individual genes, 13 mouse‐identified were associated phenotypes, suggesting overlap contributing both behaviors traits. sets, did identify 14 significant associations between gene but majority showed no These few indicate need develop more translatable identifying that “match” model specific phenotypes interest. We suggest continuing improved paradigms finer‐scale data, for instance from neuronal subtypes or cell‐type‐specific expression likely improve our etiology functional changes