Fear is a natural phenomenon, known personally to each and every person in the world. However, in some cases fear can be a huge limiting factor in someone’s life.
For example, in cases of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or phobias, fear can prevent people from doing something they want to do. This is why researchers at The University of Queensland have been looking for ways to extinguish fear-related memories.
Some segments of the human DNA look like doing nothing. However, even these junk DNA regions may actually have their functions. Image credit: Kadumago via Wikimedia (CC BY 4.0)
DNA is basically our code. Every function and every structure in our bodies is described in our DNA. However, huge portions of our DNA actually don’t do much at all and are described as junk DNA. Or at least that’s what we knew about them.
As scientists started taking a better look at these “junk DNA” regions, they found that most of the genome there is active and transcribed. This means that those segments of our DNA that seem to not be responsible for anything, actually have their function and perform it to some degree.
Researchers used a powerful new sequencing approach to identify 433 long non-coding RNAs from relatively unknown regions of the human genome. This allowed them to make some quite interesting discoveries. For example, a newly discovered ADRAM gene behaves as a scaffold for molecules inside the cell and coordinates the formation of fear-extinction memory.
.png){kind=link}
Associate Professor Timothy Bredy, one of the authors of the study, explained: “Our findings suggest that long non-coding RNAs provide a bridge, linking dynamic environmental signals with the mechanisms that control the way our brains respond to fear. With this new understanding of gene activity, we can now work towards developing tools to selectively target long non-coding RNAs in the brain that directly modify memory, and hopefully, develop a new therapy for PTSD and phobia.”
Technology used in this sequencing approach is very capable and relatively new. It allows scientists to focus on tiny sites of human DNA that would otherwise be masked. That is how scientists found those genes that were previously considered junk DNA, but actually may one day be targeted to delete fear-related memories.
In cases of PTSD and phobias fear is often rooted in memories. They are encoded by the so-called junk DNA and scientists are looking into ways to erase those memories through psychotherapy and medicine. However, this research is useful also because it showed that those “junk DNA” segments are not inactive. We need to find out what other parts of them do.
Source: University of Queensland