We identified the TT genotype as the risk genotype for alcohol misuse among control adolescents, as TT youth showed higher levels of alcohol misuse in the control group than youth with A alleles. This finding corresponds with previous research showing the major allele (T) of GABRA2 rs279845 as the “risk” allele, associated with externalizing psychopathology trajectory in adolescence (ages 12–22; Dick et al., 2009; Dick et al., 2011) and alcohol dependence in adults (ages 18 and older; Edenberg et al., 2004). Other studies, however, have found risk associations with the minor allele (A); these associations include trajectories of drunkenness frequency from adolescence to young adulthood (ages 14–25; Dick et al., 2014), alcohol dependence in adulthood (mean age 43 years; Fehr et al., 2006; Lind et al., 2008), and more negative subjective effects of alcohol administered to moderate drinking young adults in a laboratory setting (mean age 24 years; Uhart et al., 2013). The causes of inconsistency in the GABRA2 rs279845 risk allele identifications across studies are not entirely clear from the extant literature and warrant future research. We note that
