Cited by 104Memory and Neural MechanismsAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive ProcessesNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior

Translating Across Circuits and Genetics Toward Progress in Fear- and Anxiety-Related Disorders

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Ressler, Kerry J.·2020·American Journal of Psychiatry

Abstract

Anxiety and fear-related disorders are common and disabling, and they significantly increase risk for suicide and other causes of morbidity and mortality. However, there is tremendous potential for translational neuroscience to advance our understanding of these disorders, leading to novel and powerful interventions and even to preventing their initial development. This overview examines the general circuits and processes thought to underlie fear and anxiety, along with the promise of translational research. It then examines some of the data-driven "next-generation" approaches that are needed for discovery and understanding but that do not always fit neatly into established models. From one perspective, these disorders offer among the most tractable problems in psychiatry, with a great deal of accumulated understanding, across species, of neurocircuit, behavioral, and, increasingly, genetic mechanisms, of how dysregulation of fear and threat processes contributes to anxiety-related disorders. One example is the progressively sophisticated understanding of how extinction underlies the exposure therapy component of cognitive-behavioral therapy approaches, which are ubiquitously used across anxiety and fear-related disorders. However, it is also critical to examine gaps in our understanding between reasonably well-replicated examples of successful translation, areas of significant deficits in knowledge, and the role of large-scale data-driven approaches in future progress and discovery. Although a tremendous amount of progress is still needed, translational approaches to understanding, treating, and even preventing anxiety and fear-related disorders offer great opportunities for successfully bridging neuroscience discovery to clinical practice.

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Crossref · 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20010055

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  1. [22]Pavlov I: Conditioned Reflexes. Oxford, UK, Oxford University Press, 1927

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Authors
Ressler, K. J.
Affiliations
Harvard University (US)
Corresponding author
Ressler, Kerry J.
Venue
American Journal of Psychiatry
Published
2020-03-01
Volume
177
Issue
3
Pages
214-222
ISSN
  • 0002-953X (ISSN-L)
  • 1535-7228
OpenAlex
W3008262075
Cited by
104
References
129
Citations by year
2026: 16 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 25 · 2020: 6
FWCI
2.19
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • American Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute of Mental Health (U01MH110925, P50MH115874, R01MH106595, R01MH117292, R01MH108665)
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD102974)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Memory and Neural Mechanisms
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
Keywords
anxiety disorders, fear-related disorders, fear circuit, neurocircuitry, fear extinction, exposure therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, genetic mechanisms, translational neuroscience, threat processing
MeSH terms
Anxiety Disorders, Brain, Extinction, Psychological, Fear, Humans, Neural Pathways, Genome-Wide Association Study

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