ATLANTA, Feb. 24 (UPI) — Blood levels of a stress hormone are strongly linked to post-traumatic stress disorder in women, a team of U.S. researchers found.

A team of researchers from the Emory University School of Medicine and the University of Vermont said the findings are promising for developing blood and genetic tests to help predict whether a patient is going to be susceptible to PTSD.

The hormone — PACAP for pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide — modulates central nervous system activity, metabolism, blood pressure, pain sensitivity and immune function, but it is not well understood, the researchers said.

The study, published in the journal Nature, says women who have high blood levels of PACAP display more of the symptoms of PTSD, such as difficulty discriminating between fear and safety signals and being easier to startle.

“Few biological markers have been available for PTSD or for psychiatric diseases in general,” first author Kerry Ressler of the Emory University School of Medicine said in a statement.

“These results give us a new window into the biology of PTSD. What this says is that men and women who have been traumatized may arrive at PTSD by different biological pathways.”

I suffer with an anxiety illness, and I do not have them symptoms.Anxiety is when you feel fearful and tense, for example if you are confronted by an angry person. it can also be a feeling of unease, for example during exams or worrying about an interview.The psychological symptoms of anxiety include:feeling worried or uneasy a lot of the time,having difficulty sleeping – making you feel tired,an inability to concentrate,being irritable or quick to get angry,feeling that you have no control over your actions, orfeeling detached from your environment.Feeling anxious can not only affect you emotionally, but it can also mean you experience unpleasant physical symptoms, such as:fast heart rate,breathing faster,palpitations (irregular heat beats),feeling sick,chest pains,headaches,dry mouth, andsweating.These physical symptoms are usually as a result of your brain sending out multiple messages to various parts of your body when you’re feeling anxious. These messages tend to make your heart and lungs work faster.when you are feeling anxious your body begins to release a stress hormone called adrenaline. this is another reason why your heart beats faster and you breathe more rapidly.If you are unsure if your symptoms are caused by anxiety you can see your GP