[The pharmacogenetic concept of the anxio-selective effect]

Hereditary variations in the effects of benzodiazepine tranquilizers depending on the phenotype of an emotional stress reaction (ESR) are described. The membrane-receptor relationship showed differences between C57B1/6 with an "active" ESR phenotype and Balb/c with a "passive" ESR at the GABA benzodiazepine receptor complex level. The pharmacological results evidenced the selective anxiolytic properties of the novel drug aphobazole (2-[2-morpholyno)ethylthio]-5-ethoxybenzimidazole dihydrochloride) which produced an activating anxiolytic action in Balb/c mice whereas no behavioral changes were observed in C57B1/6 mice.