Mindfulness- and acceptance-based conceptualizations of PTSD implicate experiential avoidance and non-mindful behavior in the etiology and maintenance of the disorder. If experiential avoidance is associated with vulnerability to PTSD, then a mindful and accepting orientation toward experience may confer psychological resilience following exposure to trauma. This article examines how mindfulness- and acceptance-based theories of psychopathology relate to risk of and resilience to PTSD. Research is reviewed dealing with the impact of experiential avoidance, avoidant coping, dissociation, acceptance, and mindfulness on PTSD symptom severity and posttraumatic functioning. This review suggests that trait mindfulness and acceptance are associated with greater psychological adjustment following exposure to trauma, while experiential avoidance, persistent dissociation, and coping strategies involving emotional disengagement are associated with greater PTSD symptom severity and related psychopathology. Methodological challenges are explored and suggestions for future research and PTSD prevention programs are discussed.

Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a subtype of diabetes defined by an autosomal pattern of inheritance and a young age at onset, often before age 25. MODY is genetically heterogeneous, with 8 distinct MODY genes identified to date and more believed to exist. We resequenced 732 kb of genomic sequence at 8p23 in 6 MODY families unlinked to known MODY genes that showed evidence of linkage at that location. Of the 410 sequence differences that we identified, 5 had a frequency <1% in the general population and segregated with diabetes in 3 of the families, including the 2 showing the strongest support for linkage at this location. The 5 mutations were all placed within 100 kb corresponding to the BLK gene. One resulted in an Ala71Thr substitution; the other 4 were noncoding and determined decreased in vitro promoter activity in reporter gene experiments. We found that BLK-a nonreceptor tyrosine-kinase of the src family of proto-oncogenes-is expressed in ␤-cells where it enhances insulin synthesis and secretion in response to glucose by up-regulating transcription factors Pdx1 and Nkx6.1. These actions are greatly attenuated by the Ala71Thr mutation. These findings point to BLK as a previously unrecognized modulator of ␤-cell function, the deficit of which may lead to the development of diabetes.beta cells ͉ genetics ͉ MODY ͉ tyrosine kinase M aturity-onset diabetes of the young or MODY (MIM 606391) is a form of diabetes characterized by an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance and a relatively young onset (1). The availability of large families with multiple affected members has facilitated studies of this type of diabetes, leading to the identification of 8 distinct MODY genes: HNF4A, encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor 4␣ (2); GCK, encoding glucokinase (3); TCF1, encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor 1␣ (4); IPF1, encoding insulin promoter factor 1 (5); TCF2, encoding hepatocyte nuclear factor 1␤ (6); NEUROD1, encoding neurogenic differentiation 1 (7); KLF11, encoding for kruppel-like factor 11 (8); and CEL, encoding carboxyl-ester lipase (9). However, 15% or more of MODY cases are not accounted for by mutations in these genes, suggesting the existence of as yet undiscovered MODY genes in addition to those identified to date (10, 11). Here we report the identification of mutations at the Blymphocyte kinase (BLK) locus that segregate with diabetes in MODY families unlinked to known MODY genes and have detrimental effects on BLK expression or activity in insulin secreting cells. We further show that BLK is a previously unrecognized modulator of insulin synthesis and secretion that enhances the expression of key ␤-cell transcription factors Pdx-1 and Nkx6.1. ResultsWe previously described a 2.5 Mb region on chromosome 8p23 that segregated with diabetes in extended families with MODY not caused by mutations in known MODY genes (12). To identify causal mutations, we resequenced all transcripts described in this interval as of January 2008 (corresponding to 15 RefSeq genes and 20 EST-derived genes) in 2 diab...

These data indicate that serum resistin is highly heritable and has some common genetic background with traits related to insulin resistance, reinforcing the hypothesis that this adipokine may play a pathogenic role in insulin resistance-related abnormalities, including type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.