Pingxing Xie GRD ’13 and Yale School of Medicine professor Joel
Gelernter ’79 found that a particular form of a gene found on
chromosome 17 made some people more likely to develop PTSD.
Gelernter, Xie and other researchers collected genetic data from
over 6,000 volunteers for five studies on substance dependence. Xie
analyzed the serotonin transporter protein gene in 1,200 individuals
who had experienced traumatic events. The serotonin transporter protein
gene controls the production of a protein that reabsorbs serotonin — a
chemical which affects people’s mood, especially anger and aggression —
into nerve cells. The team found that individuals with the short allele
of the gene, which resulted in lower production of the serotonin
transporter protein, were more likely to develop PTSD.
No one had previously examined the allele’s relation to PTSD at such a scale, Gelernter said.
Eight percent of Americans have been diagnosed with PTSD, while 40
to 70 percent of Americans have experienced a traumatic event.
Gelernter and Xie found that individuals were more likely to develop
PTSD if they had experienced trauma both as a child and as an adult.
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