A study has identified multiple locations in the human genome related to the risk of re-experiencing traumatic memories, the most distinctive symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder.

Researchers from the VA Connecticut Healthcare System, Yale University School of Medicine, the VA San Diego Healthcare System, and the University of California San Diego collaborated with colleagues on this large genome-wide association study of more than 165,000 veterans.

In addition to providing valuable information on genetic factors that may put people at risk for PTSD, the study also demonstrates «the immediate utility of the MVP sample for disorders prevalent in U.S. veterans,» say the researchers.

The results appear online July 29, 2019, in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

PTSD is usually considered to have three main clusters of symptoms: re-experiencing, avoidance, and hyperarousal. Avoidance and hyperarousal are common to other anxiety conditions as well, but re-experiencing is largely unique to PTSD. Re-experiencing refers to intrusive thoughts, nightmares, and flashbacks of the traumatic event.

Using the vast genetic and health record data available through MVP, the research team set out to identify gene variants that increase the likelihood of PTSD re-experiencing. This study was considerably more powerful than previous PTSD genome-wide association studies (studies that look at the genomes of a large group of people for connections between shared gene variations and medical conditions or other traits) because of a larger sample size.

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Materials provided by Veterans Affairs Research Communications. Original written by Tristan Horrom. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.