biostudies-literatureUnknown30(10)Domschke KEpigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation are hypothesized to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of anxiety disorders and to predict as well as relate to treatment response. An epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) (Illumina MethylationEPIC BeadChip) was performed at baseline (BL), post-treatment (POST) and 6-month follow-up (FU) in the so far largest longitudinal sample of patients with anxiety disorders (N = 415) treated with exposure-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and in 315 healthy controls. Independent of comorbidity with depression, anxiety disorders were significantly (p ≤ 6.409E-08) associated with altered DNA methylation at 148 CpGs partly mapping to genes previously implicated in processes related to anxiety, brain disorders, learning or plasticity (e.g., GAMolecular psychiatry4529-4542https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC12436192biostudies-literatureEpigenetic markers of disease risk and psychotherapy response in anxiety disorders - a longitudinal analysis of the DNA methylome.PMC12436192Deckert JZillich LWittchen HUStraube BPittig AHoyer JRief WPlag JStrohle ALueken URichter JSchlosser PMargraf JHeinig IKoelkebeck KKottgen ASchneider SWeber HHollandt MBinder EBPauli PDomschke KSchiele MAArolt VCrespo Salvador OFydrich TDannlowski URidderbusch ICHamm AKircher TLipovsek JErhardt-Lehmann AfalseEpigenetic markers of disease risk and psychotherapy response in anxiety disorders - a longitudinal analysis of the DNA methylome.Epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation are hypothesized to play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of anxiety disorders and to predict as well as relate to treatment response. An epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) (Illumina MethylationEPIC BeadChip) was performed at baseline (BL), post-treatment (POST) and 6-month follow-up (FU) in the so far largest longitudinal sample of patients with anxiety disorders (N = 415) treated with exposure-based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and in 315 healthy controls. Independent of comorbidity with depression, anxiety disorders were significantly (p ≤ 6.409E-08) associated with altered DNA methylation at 148 CpGs partly mapping to genes previously implicated in processes related to anxiety, brain disorders, learning or plasticity (e.g., GA2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Oct2026-06-02T05:24:45.072Z2026-04-14T03:13:53.541ZS-EPMC124361924028122410.1038/s41380-025-03038-5