title: The retinoid-related orphan receptor alpha (RORA) gene and fear-related psychopathology.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study followed on findings from a recent genome-wide association study of PTSD that implicated the retinoid-related orphan receptor alpha (RORA) gene (Logue et al., 2012) by examining its relationship to broader array of disorders.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using data from the same cohort (N=540), we analyzed patterns of association between 606 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning the RORA gene and comorbidity factors termed fear, distress (i.e., internalizing factors) and externalizing.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results showed that rs17303244 was associated with the fear component of internalizing (i.e., defined by symptoms of panic, agoraphobia, specific phobia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder) at a level of significance that withstood correction for gene-wide multiple testing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The primary limitations were the modest size of the cohort and the absence of a replication sample.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results add to a growing literature implicating the RORA gene in a wide range of neuropsychiatric disorders and offer new insight into possible molecular mechanisms of the effects of traumatic stress on the brain and the role of genetic factors in those processes.
authors.affiliation: National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address: mark.miller5@va.gov.
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.affiliation: National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Erika J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Genetics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Logue
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Genetics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Clinton T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Baldwin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D008875:Middle Aged; D057094:Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 1, Group F, Member 1 / Q000235:genetics*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D057094:Nuclear Receptor Subfamily 1, Group F, Member 1; C539738:RORA protein, human
keywords: Externalizing; Fear; Gene; PTSD internalizing; RORA; Retinoid-related orphan receptor alpha