title: Early-emerging cognitive vulnerability to depression and the serotonin transporter promoter region polymorphism.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Serotonin transporter promoter (5-HTTLPR) genotype appears to increase risk for depression in the context of stressful life events. However, the effects of this genotype on measures of stress sensitivity are poorly understood. Therefore, this study examined whether 5-HTTLPR genotype was associated with negative information processing biases in early childhood.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-nine unselected seven-year-old children completed a negative mood induction procedure and a Self-Referent Encoding Task designed to measure positive and negative schematic processing. Children were also genotyped for the 5-HTTLPR gene.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Children who were homozygous for the short allele of the 5-HTTLPR gene showed greater negative schematic processing following a negative mood prime than those with other genotypes. 5-HTTLPR genotype was not significantly associated with positive schematic processing.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The sample size for this study was small. We did not analyze more recently reported variants of the 5-HTTLPR long alleles.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  5-HTTLPR genotype is associated with negative information processing styles following a negative mood prime in a non-clinical sample of young children. Such cognitive styles are thought to be activated in response to stressful life events, leading to depressive symptoms; thus, cognitive styles may index the "stress-sensitivity" conferred by this genotype.
authors.affiliation: University of Western Ontario, Department of Psychology, London, Ontario Canada N6A 5C2. ehayden@uwo.ca
authors.forename: Elizabeth P
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Hayden
authors.forename: Lea R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Dougherty
authors.forename: Bryan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Maloney
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Olino
authors.forename: Haroon
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sheikh
authors.forename: C Emily
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Durbin
authors.forename: John I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Nurnberger
authors.forename: Debomoy K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Lahiri
authors.forename: Daniel N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D000339:Affect / Q000145:classification; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics*; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006579:Heterozygote; D006720:Homozygote; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D002666:Psychology, Child; D012647:Self-Assessment; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis