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Gene‐environment interaction in posttraumatic stress disorder: An update
Author(s) -
Koenen Karestan C.,
Amstadter Ananda B.,
Nugent Nicole R.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of traumatic stress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.259
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1573-6598
pISSN - 0894-9867
DOI - 10.1002/jts.20435
Subject(s) - extant taxon , psychosocial , heritability , posttraumatic stress , gene–environment interaction , psychology , twin study , clinical psychology , psychological resilience , behavioural genetics , stressor , etiology , developmental psychology , psychiatry , psychotherapist , gene , genetics , biology , evolutionary biology , genotype
The authors provide a detailed review of the extant gene–environment interaction (GxE) research in the etiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They begin with a discussion of why PTSD is uniquely fitting for the innovative framework of GxE methodology, followed by a review of the heritability and main effect molecular genetics studies of PTSD. Next, they discuss the six GxE investigations to date on PTSD. They end with a discussion of future directions and significance of this research, with an emphasis on the expansion of psychosocial factors that may be fitting environmental variables for inclusion in this new research area. The authors posit that GxE research is vital to elucidating risk and resilience following exposure to a potentially traumatic event.