Novel approach to reveal trait anxiety through summary measures of multiple states
The prevalence of anxiety disorders is significantly the highest among all mental illnesses, estimated at around 34%. Despite its high prevalence and serious individual and societal impacts, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying this group of disorders are not fully understood. Consequently, the currently available pharmacotherapeutic treatments are ineffective in 40% of cases. Furthermore, promising new drug targets identified in preclinical studies prove ineffective in human clinical trials at an alarming rate. Our hypothesis suggests that preclinical anxiety tests can only measure transient anxious states that are highly influenced by environmental impacts, rendering them unsuitable for modelling high trait anxiety, a core symptom of anxiety disorders.
To address this issue, we have recently developed a complex behavioural sampling protocol allowing the measurement of stable trait anxiety in rodent models. Trait anxiety measured using this protocol can predict individual animals' behaviour in situations of heightened danger and disease models with strong predictive power. We also investigated the molecular neurobiological factors underlying trait anxiety, revealing a strong association with genes involved in nervous system plasticity. Our current objectives include confirming the causal role of gene correlates and, consequently, discovering new therapeutic targets.