Chronic Stressors and Adolescents' Externalizing Problems: Genetic Moderation by Dopamine Receptor D4. The TRAILS Study.

ABSTRACT: The existing literature does not provide consistent evidence that carriers of the Dopamine D4 Receptor 7-repeat allele are more sensitive to adverse environmental influences, resulting in enhanced externalizing problems, compared to noncarriers. One explanation is that the adverse influences examined in prior studies were not severe, chronic, or distressing enough to reveal individual differences in sensitivity reflected by DRD4-7R. This study examined whether the 7-repeat allele moderated the association between chronic stressors capturing multiple stressful aspects of individuals' lives and externalizing problems in adolescence. We expected that chronic stressor levels would be associated with externalizing levels only in 7-repeat carriers. Using Linear Mixed Models, we analyzed data fro

SUBMITTER: Zandstra ARE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5770493 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature