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Extinction learning is an important mechanism in the successful psychological treatment of anxiety. Individual differences in response and relapse following Cognitive Behavior Therapy may in part be explained by variability in the ease with which fears are extinguished or the vulnerability of these fears to re-emerge. Given the role of the endocannabinoid system in fear extinction, this study investigates whether genetic variation in the endocannabinoid system explains individual differences in response to CBT. Children (N = 1,309) with a primary anxiety disorder diagnosis were recruited. We investigated the relationship between variation in the CNR1, CNR2, and FAAH genes and change in primary anxiety disorder severity between pre- and post-treatment and during the follow-up period in the full sample and a subset with fear-based anxiety disorder diagnoses. Change in symptom severity during active treatment was nominally associated (P 

Original publication

DOI

10.1002/ajmg.b.32467

Type

Journal article

Journal

Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet

Publication Date

03/2017

Volume

174

Pages

144 - 155

Keywords

Cognitive Behavior Therapy, anxiety, children, endocannabinoids, fear extinction, Adolescent, Amidohydrolases, Anxiety, Anxiety Disorders, Child, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Endocannabinoids, Fear, Female, Genetic Variation, Humans, Male, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB1, Receptor, Cannabinoid, CB2, Treatment Outcome