Genome-wide study links anxiety severity to gut-brain axis and shared genetics with heart disease

A large, continuous-spectrum GWAS of anxiety symptoms (693,869 European-ancestry participants) identified 74 genetic loci (39 new) and revealed notable genetic overlap with irritable bowel syndrome (r≈0.57) and modest overlaps with coronary artery disease and migraine. The study estimates about 6% of anxiety symptom variation is explained by common variants, with the rest shaped by environment and gene–environment interactions; researchers caution that correlations do not imply causation and emphasize methodological advances (dimensional analysis) and the need for more diverse datasets. It complements clinically diagnosed anxiety genetics work and highlights gut–brain axis as a key area for future research.