rs6265
A SNP in the BDNF gene on chromosome 11. Its most notable genotype is T;T: introversion; depression resistant; impaired motor skills learning; somewhat quicker mental decline in Alzheimer patients
- Gene
- BDNF
- Location
- Chr 1127,658,369 (GRCh38)
- Highest magnitude
- 2.6Worth knowing
- Tested on
- 23andMe, AncestryDNA
- Minor allele frequency
- 23%
Genotypes
Plus strand, as in 23andMe and AncestryDNA files.
- T;TMost notableBadintroversion; depression resistant; impaired motor skills learning; somewhat quicker mental decline in Alzheimer patients
- C;TBadSlightly increased risk for ADHD or depression; somewhat quicker mental decline in Alzheimer patients
- C;CGoodcommon/normal
SNPedia records rs6265 on the minus strand: (A;A), (A;G), (G;G). Magnitude rates how notable a genotype is from 0 to 10, not how risky it is.
Frequency
Share of each genotype in 10 HapMap populations.
- AverageT;T 8% C;T 27% C;C 64%
- European ancestry (Utah)T;T 3% C;T 34% C;C 64%
- Han Chinese (Beijing)T;T 26% C;T 47% C;C 28%
- Japanese (Tokyo)T;T 17% C;T 43% C;C 40%
- Yoruba (Nigeria)T;T 0% C;T <1% C;C 99%
- African ancestry (Southwest US)T;T 0% C;T 9% C;C 91%
- Chinese (Denver)T;T 24% C;T 49% C;C 28%
- Gujarati IndianT;T 2% C;T 28% C;C 70%
- Mexican ancestry (Los Angeles)T;T 7% C;T 26% C;C 67%
- Maasai (Kenya)T;T 0% C;T 2% C;C 98%
- TuscanT;T 6% C;T 36% C;C 58%
Related
Conditions, medicines and genes
Notes
From SNPedia
Show notes, about 560 words
rs6265, also known as Val66Met, is a SNP in brain-derived neurotrophic factor BDNF gene. The more common G allele encodes the Val, while the A allele encodes Met. The A allele may also be protective against depression when subjected to repeated defeat g2b2mh blog On a driving-based motor learning task subjects with this genotype showed greater error during short-term learning and poorer retention over 4 days, relative to subjects without the polymorphism. The presence of this BDNF polymorphism is associated with differences in brain motor system function, altered short-term plasticity, and greater error in short-term motor learning. A 2017 study of 1,000 Alzheimer's disease patients, a third of whom were rs6265(A) carriers, concluded that over the ~7 year study such carriers lost memory and thinking skills somewhat more rapidly than non-carriers. Wired discusses the research as does 23andMe blog. Met/A allele associated with introversion Alzheimer's disease risk for non ApoE4 carriers is affected by the heterozygous form of rs6265, as well as the diplotypes of rs6265, rs11030104, and rs2049045. Depressed patients who had (GA or AA) appeared to show a significantly increased risk of suicidal behaviour In 2 studies of British women, rs6265(A;A) women had a lower body mass index than rs6265(G) allele carriers, with the difference being -0.57-0.911 kg/m(2), depending on the study.
T;T
Met/Met (higher risk) variant of the Val66Met SNP in the BDNF gene that codes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Met/Met is associated in some (but not all) studies with slightly increased susceptibility to certain mental health disorders such as ADHD and depression. PMID 20042999 associated with introversion This genotype may provide resistance to depression when subjected to repeated defeat blog summary On a driving-based motor learning task subjects with this genotype showed greater error during short-term learning and poorer retention over 4 days, relative to subjects without the polymorphism. The presence of this BDNF polymorphism is associated with differences in brain motor system function, altered short-term plasticity, and greater error in short-term motor learning. Wired discusses the research as does 23andMe blog.
C;T
Some studies indicate that this genotype is associated with slightly increased risk for certain mental health disorders; other studies have found no association. PMID 20682308 PMID 20087404 ]PMID 20033742 PMID 19699537 PMID 18286632 PMID 15940292 PMID 20943059 PMID 19603419 PMID 18600033 Also, On a driving-based motor learning task subjects with this genotype showed greater error during short-term learning and poorer retention over 4 days, relative to subjects without the polymorphism. The presence of this BDNF polymorphism is associated with differences in brain motor system function, altered short-term plasticity, and greater error in short-term motor learning. wiredscience/2009/10/ genetically-bad-driving/ Wired discusses the research as does 10/30/snpwatch-the-bad- driving-gene/ 23andMe blog. PMID 17293537 Alzheimer's disease risk for non ApoE4 carriers is affected by the heterozygous form of rs6265
C;C
Val/val (normal) variant of the Val66Met snp in the BDNF gene that codes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Met/met is associated with susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders.
Source and license
Adapted from rs6265 on SNPedia, using a snapshot taken October 16, 2026. SNPedia content is shared under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US, and this page is shared under the same license.
SNPedia is a community-edited wiki. Its entries can be incomplete, out of date or wrong, and nothing here is a diagnosis or medical advice. Magnitude is a community rating of how interesting a genotype is, not a risk score.