Association between serotonin transporter (5HTT) and mental fatigue development [Full text]

Abstract

Effects of long-term mental fatigue on subjective, behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) parameters in LL and LS + SS polymorphisms (5HTT gene) carriers were examined. Mental fatigue was simulated with continuous cognitive tasks performance for 2.5 hours. It was shown that long-term cognitive load significantly impacted on almost all the above parameters. Significant differences in time reaction tasks and fatigue index (reflecting (alpha + theta)/beta ratio) between carriers of LL and LS + SS polymorphisms of 5HTT gene were observed. Lower serotonin concentrations were found to lead to higher resistance to fatigue development, thus the positive role of serotonin in fatigue development was shown.