Genetic risk of depression and stress-induced negative affect in daily life.
BACKGROUND
A bias to develop negative affect in response to daily life stressors may be an important depression endophenotype, but remains difficult to assess.


OBJECTIVE
To assess this mood bias endophenotype, uncontaminated by current mood, in the course of daily life.


METHODS
The experience sampling method was used to collect multiple appraisals of daily life event-related stress and negative affect in 279 female twin pairs. Cross-twin, cross-trait associations between dailylife mood bias and DSM-IV depression were conducted.


RESULTS
Probands whose co-twins were diagnosed with lifetime depression showed a stronger mood bias to stress than those with co-twins without such a diagnosis, independent of probands' current depressive symptoms and to a greater extent in monozygotic twins than in dizygotic twins.


CONCLUSIONS
Genetic liability to depression is in part expressed as the tendency to display negative affect in response to minor stressors in daily life. This trait may represent a true depression endophenotype.
Wichers
Marieke
M
Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, South Limburg Mental Health Research and Teaching Network, EURON, Maastricht University, Vijverdalseweg 1, Concorde Building, Maastricht, The Netherlands. m.wichers@sp.unimaas.nl
Myin-Germeys
Inez
I
Jacobs
Nele
N
Peeters
Frenk
F
Kenis
Gunter
G
Derom
Catherine
C
Vlietinck
Robert
R
Delespaul
Philippe
P
Van Os
Jim
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D004200:Diseases in Twins / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010552:Personality Assessment; D010641:Phenotype; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*