Researchers recently examined how biological factors impact anxiety disorders. The team studied male and female rodent models to better understand sex differences in biological responses related to anxiety.

Researchers from Indiana University School of Medicine recently studied the behaviors associated with anxiety — published in Psychopharmacology — examining how biological factors impact anxiety disorders, specifically in females. They found that anxiety in females intensifies when there’s a specific, life-relevant condition.

The team, led by Thatiane De Oliveira Sergio, PhD, postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Woody Hopf, PhD, professor of psychiatry and primary investigator at Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, studied male and female rodent models to better understand sex differences in biological responses related to anxiety.

Anxiety disorders occur in twice as often in women than men, and social and cultural factors likely play an important role in the development of anxiety in females, De Oliveira said.

The COVID-19 pandemic heavily influenced anxiety in people. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in June 2020 — a few months into the pandemic — 13 percent of Americans started using or increasing substance use to cope with their emotions and stress due to the unknowns at that time about the pandemic.

Knowing that women have more incidence of anxiety than men, De Oliveira said the roles for many women have amplified during the pandemic — working remotely, teaching children in virtual school, everyday tasks, errands. She said these life-relevant conditions could have increased their anxiety.

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Materials provided by Indiana University School of Medicine. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.