User:Gjimenez21/Epigenetics of anxiety and stress–related disorders

This article is extremely relevant to the epigenetic of anxiety and stress-related disorders. It is written neutrally and pulls great evidence and mechanisms in which epigenetic works.

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Transgenerational epigenetic influences

Genome-wide association studies have shown that psychiatric disorders are partly heritable; however, heritability cannot be fully explained by classical Mendelian genetics, but rather epigenetics. Epigenetics focuses on behavioral and environmental influences on genetic outcomes. There are many components in understanding the heritability of psychiatric disorders. Understanding epigenetic modifications and its ability to impact epigenomes over generations is vital in analyzing potential behavioral disorders.^[1] This is because there is strong evidence of transgenerational epigenetic effects in general. For example, one study found transmission of DNA methylation patterns from fathers to offspring during spermatogenesis. More specifically to mental illnesses, several studies have shown that traits of psychiatric illnesses (such as traits of PTSD and other anxiety disorders) can be transmitted epigenetically. Parental exposure to various stimuli, both positive and negative, can cause these transgenerational epigenetic and behavioral effects.

Holocaust

An epidemiological study investigating behavioral, physiological, and molecular changes in the children of Holocaust survivors found epigenetic modifications of a glucocorticoid receptor gene, Nr3c1. This is significant because glucocorticoid is a regulator of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) and is known to affect stress response. These stress-related epigenetic changes were accompanied by other characteristics that indicated higher stress and anxiety in these offspring, including increased symptoms of PTSD, greater risk of anxiety, and higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol. The offspring demonstrate greater risk of developing PTSD in response to their own trauma.

Exercise

Just as parental stress can alter epigenetics of offspring, parental exposure to positive environmental factors cause epigenetic modifications as well. For example, male mice that participated in voluntary physical exercise resulted in offspring that had reduced fear memory and anxiety-like behavior in response to stress. This behavioral change likely occurred due to expressions of small non-coding RNAs that were altered in sperm cells of the fathers.^[2]^[3]

Hydrocortisone

The medication hydrocortisone is a synthetic form of cortisol. In recent years, the administration of hydrocortisone has been tested as a possible preventative measure for the onset of PTSD symptoms. Ideally, it should be administered immediately after a traumatic event. The efficacy of hydrocortisone as a preventative intervention for PTSD has been confirmed by a meta-analysis of eight separate studies, and researchers believe the best results are obtained when hydrocortisone is administered within the first six hours of exposure to the traumatic event. In studies, patients who took hydrocortisone for ten days had better health, and less symptoms than the patients given a placebo. At this time, however, no curative properties have been discovered. Hydrocortisone's potential operates on two bases: restoration of normal HPA axis functioning and interference with memory consolidation.Epigenetics of anxiety and stress–related disorders^[4]

References

^ Smeeth, Demelza; Beck, Stephan; Karam, Elie G; Pluess, Michael (2021-7). "The Role of Epigenetics in Psychological Resilience". The lancet. Psychiatry. 8 (7): 620–629. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(20)30515-0. ISSN 2215-0366. PMC 9561637. PMID 33915083. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
^ Yeshurun S, Hannan AJ (March 2018). "Transgenerational epigenetic influences of paternal environmental exposures on brain function and predisposition to psychiatric disorders". review. Molecular Psychiatry. 24 (4): 536–548. doi:10.1038/s41380-018-0039-z. PMID 29520039. S2CID 3767345.
^ Short AK, Yeshurun S, Powell R, Perreau VM, Fox A, Kim JH, Pang TY, Hannan AJ (May 2017). "Exercise alters mouse sperm small noncoding RNAs and induces a transgenerational modification of male offspring conditioned fear and anxiety". primary. Translational Psychiatry. 7 (5): e1114. doi:10.1038/tp.2017.82. PMC 5534950. PMID 28463242.
^ Delahanty, Douglas L.; Gabert-Quillen, Crystal; Ostrowski, Sarah A.; Nugent, Nicole R.; Fischer, Beth; Morris, Adam; Pitman, Roger K.; Bon, John; Fallon, William (2013-4). "The efficacy of initial hydrocortisone administration at preventing posttraumatic distress in adult trauma patients: a randomized trial". CNS spectrums. 18 (2): 103–111. doi:10.1017/S1092852913000096. ISSN 1092-8529. PMC 5981864. PMID 23557627. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

1. Smeeth, D., Beck, S., Karam, E. G., & Pluess, M. (2021, July). The role of epigenetics in psychological resilience. The lancet. Psychiatry. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9561637/

2. Jawaid, A., Roszkowski, M., & Mansuy, I. M. (2018). Transgenerational Epigenetics of Traumatic Stress. Progress in molecular biology and translational science, 158, 273–298. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pmbts.2018.03.003

3. Yehuda, R., & Lehrner, A. (2018). Intergenerational transmission of trauma effects: putative role of epigenetic mechanisms. World psychiatry : official journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA), 17(3), 243–257. https://doi.org/10.1002/wps.20568

4. Zschucke, E., Renneberg, B., Dimeo, F., Wüstenberg, T., & Ströhle, A. (2015). The stress-buffering effect of acute exercise: Evidence for HPA axis negative feedback. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 51, 414–425. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.10.019

[1] Smeeth, Demelza; Beck, Stephan; Karam, Elie G; Pluess, Michael (2021-7). "The Role of Epigenetics in Psychological Resilience". The lancet. Psychiatry. 8 (7): 620–629. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(20)30515-0. ISSN 2215-0366. PMC 9561637. PMID 33915083. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

[Yeshurun_2018-2] Yeshurun S, Hannan AJ (March 2018). "Transgenerational epigenetic influences of paternal environmental exposures on brain function and predisposition to psychiatric disorders". review. Molecular Psychiatry. 24 (4): 536–548. doi:10.1038/s41380-018-0039-z. PMID 29520039. S2CID 3767345.

[Short_2017-3] Short AK, Yeshurun S, Powell R, Perreau VM, Fox A, Kim JH, Pang TY, Hannan AJ (May 2017). "Exercise alters mouse sperm small noncoding RNAs and induces a transgenerational modification of male offspring conditioned fear and anxiety". primary. Translational Psychiatry. 7 (5): e1114. doi:10.1038/tp.2017.82. PMC 5534950. PMID 28463242.

[4] Delahanty, Douglas L.; Gabert-Quillen, Crystal; Ostrowski, Sarah A.; Nugent, Nicole R.; Fischer, Beth; Morris, Adam; Pitman, Roger K.; Bon, John; Fallon, William (2013-4). "The efficacy of initial hydrocortisone administration at preventing posttraumatic distress in adult trauma patients: a randomized trial". CNS spectrums. 18 (2): 103–111. doi:10.1017/S1092852913000096. ISSN 1092-8529. PMC 5981864. PMID 23557627. {{cite journal}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)

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