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Epigenetics of anxiety and stress–related disorders
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<p> Epigenetics of anxiety and stress–related disorders is the field studying the relationship between <a href="/facts/Epigenetic/UfAAERcn">epigenetic</a> modifications of genes and <a href="/facts/Anxiety/Geekl883">anxiety</a> and <a href="/facts/Stress-related_disorders/5f73xuxv">stress-related disorders</a>, including mental health disorders such as <a href="/facts/Generalized_anxiety_disorder/FJRBB4fM">generalized anxiety disorder</a> (GAD), <a href="/facts/Posttraumatic_stress_disorder/9etKu7bX">post-traumatic stress disorder</a>, <a href="/facts/Obsessive%25E2%2580%2593compulsive_disorder/bIhDh4dz">obsessive-compulsive disorder</a> (OCD), and more. These changes can lead to transgenerational stress inheritance. </p><p>Epigenetic modifications play a role in the development and heritability of these disorders and related symptoms. For example, regulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis by <a href="/facts/Glucocorticoid/2P91Aj3S">glucocorticoids</a> plays a major role in stress response and is known to be epigenetically regulated. </p><p>As of 2015 most work has been done in <a href="/facts/Animal_models/vNv6q4yb">animal models</a> in laboratories, and little work has been done in humans; the work is not yet applicable to clinical <a href="/facts/Psychiatry/uzS7vEo0">psychiatry</a>. Stress-induced epigenetic changes, particularly to genes that effect the <a href="/facts/Hypothalamic%25E2%2580%2593pituitary%25E2%2580%2593adrenal_axis/062CevaI">hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal</a> (HPA) axis, persist into future generations, negatively impacting the capacity of offspring to adapt to stress. Early life experiences, even when generations removed, can cause permanent epigenetic modifications of DNA resulting in changes in <a href="/facts/Gene_expression/alCPohLR">gene expression</a>, <a href="/facts/Endocrine/PDvN5cpj">endocrine</a> function and <a href="/facts/Metabolism/WxDrm8k5">metabolism</a>. These <a href="/facts/Heritable/t0aMmRWx">heritable</a> epigenetic modifications include <a href="/facts/DNA_methylation/npoRhsnX">DNA methylation</a> of the <a href="/facts/Promoter_(genetics)/YDYBzLfg">promoter</a> regions of genes that affect sensitivity to stress. </p>