We have previously demonstrated that activation of the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system potentiates MC degranulation responses during IgE-mediated anaphylaxis and psychological stress through corticotropin-releasing factor receptor subtype 1 (CRF<sub>1</sub>) expressed on MCs.
The present study examined whether early life stress and genetic profile scores (10 single nucleotide polymorphisms within 4 hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis genes: CRHR1, NR3C2, NR3C1, and FKBP5) predicted individual differences in amygdala functional connectivity in school-age children (9- to 14-year-olds; N = 120).
This study was conducted to determine whether CRHR1 polymorphisms interact with childhood maltreatment to predict hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis reactivity, which has been linked to both depression and early life stress.