Worry It is one of the most common and complex mental health problems out there. While many people experience it at a mild level, there are people who suffer from constant bouts that affect their whole life.

Despite the fact that there are many medications and treatments, the cause of this pathology has not yet been discovered, as it is not entirely clear what happens in the brain during an episode of anxiety.

But a new study can explain more about this problem. This was done by a group of researchers from the UK, who subjected lab rats to stress induction for six hours and then analyzed the rodent’s brain at the molecular level.

This revealed a level five increase in the amygdala (a brain region involved in anxiety). microRNA (miRNA)small molecules that help determine which genes in a cell are expressed and which are not.

The miRNA that reached the highest level, miR-483-5p, shown to suppress Pgap2 gene expressionand that this emphasis seems to relieve stress and anxiety.

“miRNAs are strategically poised to control complex neuropsychiatric diseases such as anxiety”he said Valentina Mosienkostudy co-author. “But the molecular and cellular mechanisms they use to regulate resilience and susceptibility to stress were largely unknown until now. The miR483-5p/Pgap2 (…) pathway offers enormous potential for the development of therapies against anxiety”.

Although there is still a long way to go, it is an important step towards finding mechanisms that help relieve anxiety. This is a disease that has greatly affected Colombia ever since according to 2020 figuresone in three people experience or live with symptoms of anxiety.