rs2180619

This study investigated genetic variation in the endocannabinoid system (CNR1, CNR2, FAAH genes) as a predictor of response to cognitive behavior therapy for childhood anxiety disorders in 1,309 children aged 5-17 years. Six SNPs showed nominal associations (P<0.05) with treatment response during follow-up: rs806365 (CNR1, P=0.004), rs2501431 (CNR2), rs2070956 (CNR2), rs7769940 (CNR1), rs2209172 (FAAH) associated with poorer response, and rs6928813 (CNR1) with better response. Only rs806365 survived multiple testing corrections in the fear-based anxiety disorder subset (P=0.0011). The authors conclude there is very limited evidence for genetic variation in endocannabinoid system genes predicting CBT treatment response.

This longitudinal study of 154 traumatized injury survivors examined associations between circulating endocannabinoids and CNR1/FAAH/MGLL genetic variants with depression severity at 6 months post-injury. Higher post-injury serum 2-arachidonylglycerol (2-AG) concentrations predicted greater depression severity at 6 months (β = 0.23, p = 0.007), and carriers of the minor allele (G) at CNR1 rs806371 experienced significantly greater depression (β = 0.19, p = 0.024), supporting a role for endocannabinoid system dysfunction in post-trauma depression risk.

This candidate gene association study tested the hypothesis that the cannabinoid receptor 1 (CNR1) gene is associated with nicotine dependence across two independent samples from the Mid-Atlantic Twin Registry. In the VAND sample (n=688), haplotype 1-1-2 of markers rs2023239-rs12720071-rs806368 showed female-specific association with nicotine dependence and smoking initiation (P<.001 for SI, P=.02 for ND). Replication in the VAANX sample (n=961) confirmed female-specific haplotype associations with FTND score (P=.009 for haplotype 1-1-2 of combination 7-9-10). The findings suggest sex-specific genetic effects of CNR1 variants on nicotine dependence risk.