BDNF variant linked to anxiety-related behaviors

✍ Scribed by Kenji Hashimoto

• Book ID: 101709717
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2007
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 83 KB
• Volume: 29
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0265-9247
• DOI: 10.1002/bies.20534

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is the most‐abundant neurotrophin in the brain. In mammals, it is synthesized as a precursor called proBDNF, which is proteolytically cleaved to generate mature BDNF. The BDNF gene is located on chromosome 11p13, and a functional single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of this gene has been shown to produce a valine (Val)‐to‐methionine (Met) substitution in the proBDNF protein at codon 66 (Val66Met). Several papers suggest that this SNP is related to decreased hippocampal volume and hippocampus‐mediated memory performance in humans. Recently, Chen et al.1 generated a variant BDNF mouse (BDNF^Met/Met^) that reproduces the phenotypic hallmarks in humans with a variant Met allele. In the behavioral analysis, BDNF^Met/Met^ mice show increased anxiety‐related behaviors. This mini‐review examines the impact of Met substitution of proBDNF on anxiety‐related behaviors. BioEssays 29: 116–119, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.