Lifetime anxiety linked to DNA marks across blood cell types
Comparing 1,817 people reporting lifetime anxiety with 12,626 controls, researchers found 15 to 124 anxiety-associated DNA sites per blood cell type.
Our read
Mechanisms- Studied:
- Cross-sectional study of 14,443 US participants who paid for commercial testing, against controls
- What changed:
- People reporting lifetime anxiety had different DNA tags at 15 to 124 sites per blood cell type compared with controls
- The catch:
- Anxiety status relied on self-reported diagnoses or treatment
- Stake:
- Authors work for TruDiagnostic.
- Why it’s aging research:
- It measures an outcome that worsens with age.
Editor of record: Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
An observational study analyzed blood DNA from 14,443 US participants who paid for a commercial test, including 1,817 who reported a past anxiety diagnosis or treatment. Researchers compared DNA methylation—chemical tags on DNA—with that in 12,626 controls. They used statistical methods to estimate anxiety-linked patterns in 12 blood cell types rather than separating the cells.
The findings supported a relationship between anxiety and DNA methylation that differed by cell type. They also overlapped with findings from earlier anxiety studies. Analyses of five DNA-based aging measures suggested that aging may be accelerated in anxiety. Anxiety was associated with an 11% faster estimated pace of aging on one measure and accelerated aging on another. The other three measures showed no association with anxiety.
Why it matters
The aging analyses address whether anxiety is associated with biological changes related to aging, beyond its effects on well-being.
Caveats
This observational study relied on self-reported anxiety and cannot establish cause and effect; its aging results were estimates from DNA, not observed changes over time. Participants paid for testing and were predominantly male and White, limiting how broadly the findings apply.
The paper
Texas A&M University
Nature Communications, Jun 1, 2026, Open access
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