The interplay of genotype and environment in the development of fear and anxiety

e-Neuroforum ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Sachser ◽  
K.-P. Lesch
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Anxiety Disorders ◽  
Candidate Gene ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Genetic Variants ◽  
External Influences ◽  
Postnatal Environment ◽  
Fear And Anxiety

AbstractIndividual differences in fear, anxiety, and the etiology of anxiety disorders develop dur­ing ontogeny. They are due to both genet­ic and environmental factors. With regard to the role of the environment, the organism is most susceptible to external influences dur­ing early development. Accordingly, stressors that impinge on the maternal organism dur­ing pregnancy evoke high levels of anxiety in the offspring later in life, as does an adverse early postnatal environment. However, anxi­ety-related circuits in the central nervous sys­tem retain their plasticity in adulthood, i.e., levels of anxiety can also be modified by ex­perience across the entire successive lifespan. Notably, the effects of external stressors on the individual’s level of anxiety are modulat­ed by genotype. Such genotype-by-environ­ment interactions are particularly well stud­ied in relation to genetic variants that modu­late the function of the serotonin transport­er. Thus, this review focuses on this candidate gene to elucidate the interplay of genotype and environment in the development of fear and anxiety.

The Role of Glutamate in Anxiety and Related Disorders

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 820-830 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernadette M. Cortese ◽  
K. Luan Phan
Keyword(s):  
Anxiety Disorders ◽  
Metabotropic Glutamate Receptors ◽  
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Treatment ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Compulsive Disorder ◽  
Fear Potentiated Startle ◽  
Fear And Anxiety

AbstractAnxiety, stress, and trauma-related disorders are a major public health concern in the United States. Drugs that target the γ-aminobutyric acid or serotonergic system, such as benzodiazepines and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, respectively, are the most widely prescribed treatments for these disorders. However, the role of glutamate in anxiety disorders is becoming more recognized with the belief that drugs that modulate glutamatergic function through either ionotropic or metabotropic glutamate receptors have the potential to improve the current treatment of these severe and disabling illnesses. Animal models of fear and anxiety have provided a method to study the role of glutamate in anxiety. This research has demonstrated that drugs that alter glutamate transmission have potential anxiolytic action for many different paradigms including fear-potentiated startle, punished responding, and the elevated plus maze. Human clinical drug trials have demonstrated the efficacy of glutamatergic drugs for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and social phobia. Recent data from magnetic resonance imaging studies provide an additional link between the glutamate system and anxiety. Collectively, the data suggest that future studies on the mechanism of and clinical efficacy of glutamatergic agents in anxiety disorders are appropriately warranted.

scholarly journals Importance of Maternal Persistence in Young Children's Persistence

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masahiro Imafuku ◽  
Atsuko Saito ◽  
Kenchi Hosokawa ◽  
Kazuo Okanoya ◽  
Chihiro Hosoda
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Parenting Style ◽  
Personality Trait ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Maternal Factors ◽  
Social Success ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors

Persistence of a distant goal is an important personality trait that determines academic and social success. Recent studies have shown that individual differences in persistence involve both genetic and environmental factors; however, these studies have not examined the role of maternal factors on a young children's persistence. The present study examined whether mothers' persistence is associated with persistence in children aged 3–6 years. In addition, the associations between mothers' persistence/parenting style and children's self-control/social development (prosocial behaviors and difficulties) were examined. Our results showed that maternal persistence is essential for the child's persistence. Children's self-control and social development were also associated with the mothers' persistence and parenting style. Our findings suggest that a young child's persistence may develop under the influence of a familiar adult (i.e., mother) and characterizes their social development, highlighting the importance of persistence in parenting.

Genotypic and Phenotypic Aspects of Longevity: Results from a Sicilian Survey and Implication for the Prevention and Treatment of Age-related Diseases

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 228-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia Accardi ◽  
Stefano Aprile ◽  
Giuseppina Candore ◽  
Calogero Caruso ◽  
Rosanna Cusimano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Composition ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Variants ◽  
Translational Medicine ◽  
Ongoing Study ◽  
Successful Ageing ◽  
Healthy Life ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Prevention And Treatment

Background: It is well known that long living individuals are a model of successful ageing and that the identification of both genetic variants and environmental factors that predispose to a long and healthy life is of tremendous interest for translational medicine. Methods: We present the preliminary findings obtained from an ongoing study on longevity conducted on a sample of Sicilian long-lived individuals. Results: We review the characteristics of longevity in Sicily, taking into account lifestyle, environment, genetics, hematochemical values, body composition and immunophenotype. In addition, we discuss the possible implications of our data for the prevention and/or treatment of age-related diseases. Conclusion: As widely discussed in this review, the explanation of the role of genetics and lifestyle in longevity can provide important information on how to develop drugs and/or behaviours that can slow down or delay ageing. Thus, it will be possible to understand, through a “positive biology” approach, how to prevent and/or reduce elderly frailty and disability.

scholarly journals Heritability of Cortisol Production and Metabolism Throughout Adolescence

2019 ◽  
Vol 105 (2) ◽  
pp. 443-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Britt J van Keulen ◽  
Conor V Dolan ◽  
Ruth Andrew ◽  
Brian R Walker ◽  
Hilleke E Hulshoff Pol ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Factors ◽  
Environmental Influences ◽  
Broad Sense ◽  
Broad Sense Heritability ◽  
Total Contribution ◽  
Cortisol Metabolism ◽  
Genetic And Environmental Factors

Abstract Context Inter-individual differences in cortisol production and metabolism emerge with age and may be explained by genetic factors. Objective To estimate the relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to inter-individual differences in cortisol production and metabolism throughout adolescence. Design Prospective follow-up study of twins. Setting Nationwide register. Participants 218 mono- and dizygotic twins (N = 109 pairs) born between 1995 amd 1996, recruited from the Netherlands Twin Register. Cortisol metabolites were determined in 213, 169, and 160 urine samples at the ages of 9, 12, and 17, respectively. Main outcome measures The total contribution of genetic factors (broad-sense heritability) and shared and unshared environmental influences to inter-individual differences in cortisol production and activities of 5α-reductase, 5β-reductase, and 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases and cytochrome P450 3A4. Results For cortisol production rate at the ages of 9, 12, and 17, broad-sense heritability was estimated as 42%, 30%, and 0%, respectively, and the remainder of the variance was explained by unshared environmental factors. For cortisol metabolism indices, the following heritability was observed: for the A-ring reductases (5α-and 5β-reductases), broad-sense heritability increased with age (to >50%), while for the other indices (renal 11β-HSD2, global 11β-HSD, and CYP3A4), the contribution of genetic factors was highest (68%, 18%, and 67%, respectively) at age 12. Conclusions The contribution of genetic factors to inter-individual differences in cortisol production decreased between 12 and 17y, indicative of a predominant role of individual circumstances. For cortisol metabolism, distinct patterns of genetic and environmental influences were observed, with heritability that either increased with age or peaked at age 12y.

The influence of mother's diseases and complications of pregnancy on the development of allergic reactions in neonates and infants

2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 20-26
Author(s):  
I. I. Evsyukova
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Allergic Diseases ◽  
Allergic Reactions ◽  
Immune Mechanisms ◽  
Immunological Reactions ◽  
Neonates And Infants

The article reviews the materials dealing with the role of mothers diseases, complications of pregnancy, and unfavorable environmental factors in formation of immunological reactions in neonates. The author emphasizes the role of disturbances of afterbirth state in case of gestosis, infections, mothers smoking.Peculiarities of immune mechanisms of neonates compared with those of elder children determine their reactivity and early development of allergic diseases.

The Role of Environmental Factors in the Early Development of Egyptian Stone Architecture

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Jun Yi Wong
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Early Development ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Old Kingdom ◽  
Private Realm ◽  
Early Dynastic ◽  
First Dynasty ◽  
Socio Economic Factors

Much detail regarding the early development of stone architecture in Egypt remains unclear. Prevailing studies tend to focus on the contribution of religious and socio-economic factors, but the role of environmental elements should not be understated. For much of the First Dynasty, innovation in stone architecture was driven by developments in the private realm, a result of favourable geology in Lower Egypt. Meanwhile, multiple strands of evidence suggest that Egypt experienced wetter climatic conditions during the Early Dynastic period and the Old Kingdom. This would have had major implications on both the production of mudbrick and the short-term durability of mudbrick structures. It is argued that these environmental factors played a key role in facilitating and accelerating the rise of stone architecture in Egypt.

MS282 ROLE OF SUSCEPTIBILITY GENETIC VARIANTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS IN OBESITY RISK IN TWO SPANISH POPULATION BASED STUDIES

2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 166
Author(s):  
F.J. Chaves ◽  
M.L. Mansego ◽  
S. Morcillo ◽  
G. Rojo ◽  
F. Martínez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Genetic Variants ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Spanish Population ◽  
Obesity Risk
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