Differential Effects of Serotonin Transporter Genotype on Anxiety-Like Behavior and Cognitive Judgment Bias in Mice.

ABSTRACT: In humans, the short allele of a common polymorphism in the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene is associated with a higher risk to develop depression and anxiety disorders. Furthermore, individuals carrying this allele are characterized by negative judgment biases, as they tend to interpret ambiguous information in a more pessimistic way. 5-HTT knockout mice, lacking the 5-HTT gene either homo- or heterozygously, provide a widely used model organism for the study of symptoms related to human anxiety disorders. In the present study, we aimed to prove the anxiety-like phenotype of the 5-HTT mouse model, and to investigate whether 5-HTT genotype also causes differences in judgment bias. While our results confirm that homozygous 5-HTT knockout mice display highest levels of anxiety-like behavi

SUBMITTER: Krakenberg V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6902087 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature