Genetic factors may shape individual vulnerability to childhood trauma, study shows

A large-scale analysis by King's College London researchers combined genetic profiles with questionnaire data on eleven types of trauma from more than 140,000 volunteers in the U.K. Biobank and three NIHR studies. The investigators discovered that childhood trauma, particularly emotional and physical neglect, showed the strongest link to post-traumatic stress symptoms and the most pronounced gene-environment interactions.

The gene FAM120A was identified as having a notable interaction with childhood emotional neglect. Although the polygenic risk score accounted for roughly 2 % of symptom variance, the authors argue that integrating genetic insights with detailed trauma histories could improve future prevention and treatment strategies. Experts caution that genetics alone cannot predict who will develop PTSD and stress the need for more nuanced data collection.