Victoria E Burns

• BSc/PhD Sport and Exercise Sciences
• Professor at University of Birmingham

Psychological stress induces a beta-adrenergic dependent mobilization of CD8 + T lymphocytes (CTL) into the peripheral blood. Here we identified infection with Cytomegalovirus (CMV) as a major determinant of this mobilization, and characterized the cellular and transcriptional alterations that underlie enhanced responsivity. During acute stress (TS...

Our thoughts and feelings towards groupwork and outdoor learning impact our subsequent engagement in, and learning from, such activities. This study explores the impact of a pre-course video when used in preparation for an outdoor groupwork skills course. The video was designed according to the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) to enhance intention...

Opportunities to attend training courses abound for staff and students alike, either as compulsory elements of academic programmes or contracts, or as voluntary options for self-development. It is generally assumed that the content of the training programme will be utilised in future experiences in a process known as transfer (Gass, 1999). However,...

The primary aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of combining layered stimulus response training (LSRT) with one week of imagery rehearsal on exercise imagery ability. Further aims were to investigate pre-to post-intervention changes in exercise related feeling states and interest/enjoyment, and determine if imagery ability at pos...

This study investigates the initial development of groupwork skills through outdoor adventure education (OAE) and the factors that predict the extent of this development, using the first two levels of Kirkpatrick’s model of training evaluation. University students (N = 238) completed questionnaires measuring their initial reactions to OAE (Level 1...

Biological ageing of the immune system, or immunosenescence, predicts poor health and increased mortality. A hallmark of immunosenescence is the accumulation of differentiated cytotoxic T cells (CD27(-)CD45RA(+/-); or dCTLs), partially driven by infection with the cytomegalovirus (CMV). Immune impairments reminiscent of immunosenescence are also ob...

Groupwork is an increasingly popular method of learning in higher education and the ability to work effectively with others is important for academic success and employability. This systematic review investigated the use of outdoor adventure education (OAE) in facilitating the development of transferable groupwork skills in higher education. The st...

Stimuli that activate the sympathetic nervous system, such as acute psychological stress, rapidly invoke a robust mobilization of lymphocytes into the circulation. Experimental animal studies suggest that bone marrow-derived progenitor cells (PCs) also mobilize in response to sympathetic stimulation. Here we tested the effects of acute psychologica...

Purpose: This paper aims to evaluate the perceived efficacy of outdoor groupwork skills programmes for undergraduate and postgraduate students, and the factors that influence its success. It also illustrates the use of Kirkpatrick’s (1994) 4-level model of training evaluation as a framework for qualitative investigation of learning and transfer, fr...

This study investigated whether imaging a brisk walk once a day over a week could increase barrier self-efficacy among women who wanted to increase their exercise behavior. Participants (N = 32, mean age = 31.90 years, SD = 10.17) were randomly allocated to either an imagery rehearsal group or control group. The 4 min 10 s guided imagery script was...

The aim of the present study was to develop and provide psychometric evidence in support of the Groupwork Skills Questionnaire (GSQ) for measuring task and interpersonal groupwork skills. A 46-item version of the GSQ was initially completed by 672 University students. The number of items was reduced to 15 following exploratory factor analyses and a...

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a herpes virus that has been implicated in biological aging and impaired health. Evidence, largely accrued from small-scale studies involving select populations, suggests that stress may promote non-clinical reactivation of this virus. However, absent is evidence from larger studies, which allow better statistical adjustmen...

Outdoor adventure education courses are used in higher education to develop transferable skills such as groupwork and problem-solving skills. There is a need for exploratory investigation into students’ perceptions of this experience. This study aimed to develop an innovative qualitative data collection method, and to use it to explore students’ pe...

This is a guide to using the Groupwork Skills Questionnaire (GSQ) in Higher Education as part of the Birmingham Evaluating Skills Transfer (BEST) Project. For more information, see www.bestskills.co.uk.

Background Students working in cross-cultural groups can experience challenges, including different language skills and understanding of interpersonal behaviours. Without appropriate skills to manage these differences, cultural isolation can occur if people choose to primarily work with those of similar backgrounds. This study explores the benefit...

Objective To assess whether a life-style physical activity intervention improved antibody response to a pneumococcal vaccination in sedentary middle-aged women.Methods Eighty-nine sedentary women completed a 16-week exercise (physical activity consultation, pedometer, telephone/e-mail prompts; n = 44) or control (advisory leaflet; n = 45) intervent...

Ageing is associated with a decline in immune competence termed immunosenescence. In the elderly, this process results in an accumulation of differentiated 'effector' phenotype memory T cells, predominantly driven by Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection. Here, we asked whether CMV also drives immunity towards a senescent profile in healthy young adults....

Imagery studies have varied widely in the methods used to deliver guided imagery interventions. This variation has led to difficulties comparing studies and uncertainty as to what methods should be followed. A review is needed to evaluate the interventions to date to inform applied recommendations. The aim of this systematic review was to (1) asses...

Background: A number of small-scale studies have shown that stress may drive reactivation of latent viruses. However, evidence from larger samples, which allow for more stringent statistical control and mediator analyses, is virtually absent. As there have also been recent reports showing longitudinal associations between one such virus, cytomegalo...

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common herpes virus that underlies accelerated aging of the immune system and predicts all- cause mortality. Data from experimental animal studies and human epidemiology additionally suggest that this neurotropic virus may affect personality, i.e., reducing novelty seeking. The preliminary nature and potential...

Finding clinically relevant measures of immune function is an important challenge in psychoneuroimmunological research. Here, we discuss the advantages of the vaccination model, and provide guidance on the methodological decisions that are important to consider in the use of this technique. These include the choice of vaccination, timing of assessm...

High intensity acute exercise at the time of vaccination has been shown to enhance the subsequent antibody response. This study examines whether an acute moderate intensity aerobic intervention prior to vaccination can enhance antibody response to pneumonia and half dose influenza vaccination. Sixty young (age (SD)=22.0 (6.1) years) and 60 older (a...

Self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan, 2000) posits basic psychological need satisfaction (BPNS) as essential for optimal functioning and health. Grounded in this framework, the current study examined the role of BPNS in dancers' cognitive appraisals and hormonal and emotional responses to performance stress. Dancers reported their degree of BPNS...

The hunt for novel tools to investigate empirical questions is ever present in psychophysiological research. Antibody response to vaccination has received increasing attention over recent years as a useful measure of in vivo immune function. There is now considerable evidence that the magnitude of the antibody response to vaccination is associated...

It has been speculated that eccentric exercise improves antibody responses to vaccines by inducing a pro-inflammatory environment at the site of administration. However, eccentric exercise also induces immunological changes at a systemic level. This study investigated whether exercise-induced changes in the antibody response are mediated locally or...

Gamma-delta (gammadelta) T lymphocytes are versatile cells that play key roles in bacterial clearance, wound repair, and delayed-type hypersensitivity reactions. Recently we showed that these cells are mobilized into the blood during acute psychological stress. gammadelta T lymphocytes are a heterogeneous population of cells, and the current study...

Acute exercise prior to vaccination can improve the antibody response to influenza vaccination. However, both the optimal exercise protocol and the mechanisms underpinning this adjuvant effect remain unclear. The aim of the current study was to determine whether exercise intensity influenced the efficacy of the intervention. One hundred and sixty h...

Antibody response to vaccination provides a useful. in vivo method of testing the integrated immune system. Chronic stress can have a detrimental effect on antibody response to a variety of vaccinations in both young and elderly populations. The next challenge is to examine whether stress reduction interventions can enhance vaccination responses.

An acute bout of exercise prior to vaccination can improve the antibody and cell-mediated responses to influenza vaccination. The mechanisms underpinning this adjuvant effect remain unclear, and further investigation to determine the optimal exercise protocol is warranted. The aim of the current study was to determine whether exercise augmented the...

To examine the relationship between cardiovascular activity in response to acute psychological stress and the antibody response to vaccination. Fifty-seven healthy participants were vaccinated with the trivalent influenza vaccine and meningococcal A+C polysaccharides. Antibody levels were measured at baseline and 5-weeks post-vaccination. Cardiovas...

The mobilization of cytotoxic lymphocytes, such Natural Killer (NK) cells and CD8(+) T cells, during stress and exercise is well documented in humans. However, humans have another cytotoxic lymphocyte subset that has not been studied in this context: the Gamma Delta (gammadelta) T lymphocyte. These cells play key roles in immune processes including...

An acute bout of exercise evokes mobilisation of lymphocytes into the bloodstream, which can be largely attributed to increases in CD8+ T lymphocytes (CD8TLs) and natural killer (NK) cells. Evidence further suggests that, even within these lymphocyte subsets, there is preferential mobilisation of cells that share certain functional and phenotypic c...

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfate (DHEAS) are hormones produced by the adrenal cortex that decline in concentration with age. Decreased DHEA levels are associated with age-related disease and oxidative stress but might be increased in younger adults by exercise. Studies are presented assessing the response of DHEA and DHEAS to varied-in...

To examine complement cascade activation after an acute psychological stress task. Psychological stress has been implicated in the exacerbation of inflammatory disorders. Although the complement cascade is a key component of these inflammatory processes, there has been little research regarding its susceptibility to stress. In experiment 1, 38 heal...

Next time you get flu or a cold after a particularly difficult week, don't dismiss it as coincidence. Interdisciplinary work between psychologists and immunologists has shown that factors like stress could be the trigger. By studying the response to vaccination, we can examine immune function in a clinically meaningful way. This technique has demon...

To determine if acute stress experienced at the time of antigenic challenge augments the subsequent immune response. Sixty healthy young adults were randomized to exercise (n = 20), mental stress (n = 20) or control (n = 20) before meningococcal A+C vaccination. Antibody concentration was measured by microsphere-based antibody quantification assay...

Acute stress, such as a bout of exercise, is accepted to cause an array of immunologic changes. Recently, it has been proposed that acute stress activation of the innate immune system might be harnessed as an adjuvant to enhance immune responses to antigen challenge. This review develops the acute stress-induced immunoenhancement hypothesis and its...

The immune response to vaccination in animals can be enhanced by exposure to acute stress at the time of vaccination. The efficacy of this adjuvant strategy for vaccination in humans requires investigation. The current study employed a randomised controlled trial design to examine the effects of eccentric exercise prior to influenza vaccination on...

Age-related immunological and endocrinological changes may have implications for resilience to stress in older adults. We hypothesize that the combination of adrenopause and immunosenescence may leave this population particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of stress on immunity. We propose that exercise may be an effective intervention to l...

The inflammatory responsive cytokine interleukin-6 (IL-6) helps regulate immune responses to exercise. Evidence suggests that increases in IL-6 are related to exercise duration and intensity. However, the moderating effect of sex and underlying mediators have received limited attention. We compared plasma IL-6 responses to two cycling tasks with a...

Stressful life events exposure including bereavement, an event commonly experienced by elderly people, social support, marital status, and satisfaction were examined in relation to antibody response to the annual trivalent influenza vaccination in an elderly community sample (N=184). Antibody response was assessed at baseline, and at 1 and 12 month...

Animal studies have shown that an acute stressor in close temporal proximity to immune challenge can enhance the response to delayed-type hypersensitivity and antibody response to vaccination. The current study examined the effects of acute exercise or mental stress prior to influenza vaccination on the subsequent antibody response to each of the t...

Interleukin-6 (IL-6), an immune regulator that helps coordinate the inflammatory response, may mediate inflammatory disease exacerbation associated with stress. Twenty men and twenty women completed a single session, comprising baseline (20 min), mental arithmetic task (8 min), and recovery (60 min). Blood samples, taken at baseline, immediately af...

This study determined whether stressful life events and social support were related to antibody status following both thymus-dependent and thymus-independent vaccinations. Life events in the previous year and customary social support were measured in 57 healthy students at baseline. Antibody status was also assessed at baseline and at five weeks an...

This study investigated predictors of influenza vaccination uptake since the introduction of the policy to target over 65s. Four hundred and forty-four participants completed a cross-sectional structured interview. The predictors of vaccination uptake were: having a doctor or nurse who explained why the vaccination is important and possible side ef...

This study examined whether neuroticism was related to the antibody response to influenza vaccination and whether the relationship was mediated by cortisol reactions to acute laboratory mental stress. Antibody status was assessed at baseline and to a trivalent influenza vaccination in 57 students at 5-week and 5-month follow-up. Neuroticism was als...

Given the possible role of hemoconcentration in myocardial infarction and apparent sex differences in susceptibility, three studies examined sex differences in mental stress-induced hemoconcentration, and explored possible underlying mechanisms. Blood pressure, heart rate, and hematocrit were monitored at rest and in response to a mental stress tas...

Psychological stress has been shown to be associated with poorer antibody levels following vaccination in both animals and humans, although the mechanisms underlying this relationship remain unclear. However, animal research has enabled investigation of how this relationship may be affected by the influence of individual differences in physiologica...

Acute psychological stress has been shown to alter secretory immunity, principally secretory immunoglobulin A (S-IgA). Most acute stress tasks result in increases in S-IgA, but decreases have been reported in response to the cold pressor. However, the evidence is mixed, with increases and no changes in S-IgA in response to the cold pressor also bei...

Chronic stress has been associated with impaired response to influenza vaccination in the elderly. This study investigated whether mild, intermittent stress experienced by young, healthy adults has a similar effect. Antibody and psychological status were determined prevaccination and 5 weeks and 5 months later; a fourfold increase in antibody to at...

The purpose of this review is to determine the effects of psychosocial stress on antibody response to vaccination in humans, consider possible mechanisms, and identify agenda for future research. Studies of the association between stress and vaccination response in humans were reviewed. There is evidence of a negative association between stress and...

Psychological stress has been associated with reduced immune response to a variety of vaccinations. This study is the first to examine antibody status after vaccination with a conjugate vaccine, in which a polysaccharide antigen is conjugated to a protein to elicit a thymus-dependent antibody response. Sixty undergraduate students, who had received...

The present study examined the hemodynamics underlying blood pressure elevations for evidence of a shift in the control of blood pressure during prolonged mental stress. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), cardiac output (CO), and total peripheral resistance (TPR) were measured at rest, during a 28-min mental arithmetic stress task, and during recovery,...

This study examined possible neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying the association between stress and antibody response to vaccination. Hepatitis B antibody titers were obtained, and salivary cortisol and cardiovascular activity measured during baseline, mental arithmetic, and recovery in 30 undergraduates. It was hypothesised that higher reactivity...

The present study investigated the association between exposure to stressful life events, coping style, and antibody status after hepatitis B vaccination. Two hundred sixty medical school undergraduates, who had received the three-dose hepatitis B vaccine before recruitment to this study, completed questionnaires measuring exposure to stressful lif...

Cardiovascular activity was measured at resting baseline and in response to a car racing game, undertaken in competition or in cooperation with an experimenter, or individually. Competitiveness and win and goal orientations were assessed by questionnaire. Competition provoked increases in blood pressure and heart rate, and a significant shorte...

Secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) in saliva and cardiovascular activity were measured at rest and in response to three film extracts varying in affective content. Subjective ratings of film impact confirmed a priori assumptions; the humorous film was rated as funnier than the other two films, the didactic film as more boring than the other two film...