Gene therapy in rodent amygdala against fear disorders

Successful treatment of fear and anxiety disorders is presently a difficult task. A major limitation is the fact that underlying physiological mechanisms of fear and anxiety are only now beginning to be understood. As we obtain more information about mechanisms and brain circuits involved, treatment of these conditions will become increasingly realistic.

Gene therapy is a promising treatment strategy that has several advantages over the more widely used pharmacological approaches. In this review we discuss the potential and limitation of gene therapy in the amygdala. This review concerns itself with papers published within the last 20 years in the field of gene therapy for fear and anxiety, and has been primarily conducted in rodent models.

We present the current state of research into gene therapy for anxiety disorders, using a few case studies. The review will delineate challenges, limitations and opportunities for successful gene therapy.

There are sizeable gains in knowledge about functioning of the fear system. This will inform future improvements in gene therapy approaches. An ideal gene therapy strategy will involve improvements in both delivery vectors and in design of therapeutic cargo.