5-HTT genotype and inertia of negative affect in adolescents and young adults from the general population.

The study aims to replicate the previous found association of 5-HTTLPR and inertia of negative affect in daily life of adolescents and young adults. Data of 877 adolescents (aged 14-21 years) of the Behavior and Mind Health (BeMIND) study (epidemiological cohort study, Dresden, Germany) were genotyped for 5-HTTLPR/rs25531, grouped into SS/SLG/SLA/LGLA/LGLG vs. LALA, and provided ratings on negative affect items, depression and anxiety (Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System) eight times a day over 4 days. Multilevel regression models did not reveal an association of 5-HTTLPR genotype and inertia of negative affect, nor associations with inertia of anxiety or depression. Inertia of negative affect seems not to be a psychological mechanism through which 5-HTTLPR acts on psychopathology.