(Stein et al., 2008), HPA axis activation (Gotlib et al., 2008), and attentional vigilance to threat (Beevers et al., 2007; Hayden et al., 2008). This pattern of results highlights the importance of evaluating more elemental characteristics (e.g., amygdala response to emotional stimuli) as modulators of the association between 5HTTLPR and disorder status. In short, there may be a variety of important pathways to alcohol dependence, and the 5HTTLPR gene may be linked with a risk factor for one of these pathways, such as greater affective intolerance (see Stein, Schork, & Gelernter, 2008). Indeed, Lesch (2005) argued that affective variables that are influenced by serotonin, such as reactivity to stress and poor emotion regulation, may be key components of the susceptibility for alcohol dependence.
