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Stress: Concepts, Definition and History
Abstract
Stress has a different meaning for different people under different conditions. The first and most generic definition of stress was that proposed by Hans Selye: “Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand.” Selye's generic definition is applicable to the stress response in all three phylogenetic domains of organisms ranging from bacteria to man. Other definitions have evolved to cater for different situations–for example, cognitive. This article explores the basis for these definitions and their validity, and outlines the neuroendocrine mechanisms that subserve the stress response. The concept of homeostasis, “stability through constancy” as the main mechanism by which the body copes with stress, has given way to allostasis, “stability through change” brought about by central neural regulation of the set points that adjust physiological parameters to meet the stressful challenge. Also reviewed briefly are relatively new stress concepts based on (1) genetic and epigenetic factors that may determine individual susceptibility to stress, and (2) the fact that fetal malnutrition may predispose individuals to the metabolic syndrome (obesity, hypertension, dislipidemia, and diabetes type 2) that has reached epidemic proportions.
... Acute stress response is under sympathetic nervous system (SNS) influence, which provokes an animal to fight or flight. According to Hans Selye, acute response is the first step of what he called General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS), a universal stress response of vertebrates [1]. ...
... Hans Hugo Bruno Selye, known as the father of stress research, was the first to introduce the word stress and to provide a simple and general definition of stress: "stress is the non specific response of the body to any demand" [1]. ...
... According to Richard S. Lazarus: stress is a condition or feeling experienced when a person perceives that "demands exceed the personal and social resources the individual is able to mobilize." Therefore, psychological stress is not physical, it is not a pain but the biological response to a "stressor" [1]. ...
Stress has become the health epidemic of the twenty-first century; its burden we faced is due to social and professional pressure (spouse death, marital separation and loss of job). If stress is supposed to help an organism to go through daily issue
and particular emotional issues, it can be a source of health damage, when sustained. Negative effects of stress can go from change in life style to cardiovascular events and
cognitive disorders. Periodontal health can also be affected. During chronic stress, T helper 2 (Th2) lymphocytes are responsible for promoting the destruction of peri-
odontal tissue. Wrong stress management is characterized by changes in life style like poor oral hygiene, smoking, diet modification and parafunctions. This contributes to increase dental biofilm and worsen periodontitis. The most clinically relevant effects are wound healing and response to periodontal treatment. Suppression of immune
response components during stress prevents the elimination of damaged tissues as well as any new tissue buildup. Moreover, peripheral vasoconstriction and low oxygen
resulting from excessive catecholamine during stress compromise wound healing and response to periodontal treatment. This highlights the importance of knowledge about psychological state of patients with periodontitis and the need for coping strategies’ improvement in an emotionally stressed patient to expect good response to treatment.
... Globally, the prevalence of dyspepsia is between 10-30% of the world's total population. The prevalence rate of dyspepsia in Indonesia reaches 40-50% and has increased significantly from 10 million people in 2020 to 28 million people, or around 11.3% of Indonesia's total population [6]. Data from Profile Indonesian Health in 2020 shows that dyspepsia has reached the 10th position as the digestive disease most frequently experienced by inpatients in hospitals in 2019, with the number of patients around 34,039 or around 1.59% of the total patients [7]. ...
... The emergence of functional dyspepsia cannot be viewed in isolation, because other factors in each individual also influence it. In theory, there are several factors such as diet (spicy food, drinks such as coffee, tea, and alcohol) and lifestyle such as smoking which are believed to contribute to the emergence of dyspepsia symptoms [6,23]. This theory is by research conducted by Clarensius Geovani and colleagues. in medical students at Nusa Cendana University, where there was a relationship between consuming spicy food, drinking tea or coffee, and carbonated drinks with the incidence of dyspepsia, namely with a pvalue = 0.001. ...
Background: Stress is a problem that often occurs among students. The high incidence of stress in students can interfere with students' effectiveness in carrying out their lecture activities. Stress in students not only affects the quality of learning but can also affect the physical condition of students, one of which is the occurrence of gastrointestinal disorders, one example of which is dyspepsia. Aims: This study aims to determine whether there is a relationship between stress levels and functional dyspepsia in students at the Faculty of Medicine, Indonesian Christian University class of 2020. Study Design: This research uses an observational analytical research design method with a cross-sectional approach. The main data source is primary data obtained through questionnaires taken online via Google Forms. Place and Duration of Study: The research was conducted at the Indonesian Christian University located in Cawang, East Jakarta. Time of research in September 2022. Methodology: The population in this study was 137 students from the Faculty of Medicine, Indonesian Christian University class of 2020. The sample was taken using a simple random sampling technique totaling 103 people determined using the Slovin formula with an uncertainty percentage of 5%. Results: From the results of data collection on 103 respondents who were FK UKI students Class of 2020, around 65% or 67 respondents were identified as having normal stress levels and as many as 64 students (62%) had symptoms of functional dyspepsia. Based on the results of the bivariate analysis, it was found that there was a relationship between the level of stress and the incidence of dyspepsia experienced by FK UKI students class of 2020 with the results of the chi-square test, namely p = 0.003 < sig 0.05 Conclusion: There is a significant relationship between stress levels and functional dyspepsia. This certainly cannot be taken lightly because the incidence of functional dyspepsia can have fatal consequences which can disrupt the sufferer's activities and productivity. Therefore, it is very necessary to manage emotions (stress levels) both by the sufferer himself and with professional help.
... So much so, that this stress has been characterized by World Health Organization (WHO) as the "health epidemic of the 21st century". Stress is a component whose perception varies from person to person and progresses in coordination with the flexibility and resilience of individuals [33]. Stress is a highly subjective phenomenon as well as being caused by external conditions and experiences. ...
... Low amounts of stress motivate and activate the individual [35]. Reducing perceived stress levels and increasing adaptive coping are critical for stress management [33][34][35][36]. Determining the role of stress in problem situations is important in physical and psychological terms [37]. ...
Background
Emotional intelligence and life satisfaction are essential components for good psychological well-being. Studies examining the elements contributing to emotional intelligence and its relationships with different psychological constructs are likely to positively contribute to mental health. Therefore, the present study examined the mediating roles of perceived stress and psychological resilience in the relationship between emotional intelligence and life satisfaction.
Methods
The study sample comprised 780 university students (62.3% females) studying at universities in different regions of Türkiye. An online survey included the Emotional Intelligence Scale, Satisfaction with Life Scale, Psychological Resilience Scale, and Perceived Stress Scale. A multifactorial complex predictive correlational design was used.
Results
The results showed that emotional intelligence was (i) positively correlated with life satisfaction and psychological resilience, and (ii) negatively correlated with perceived stress. In the final model, perceived stress and psychological resilience played a mediating role in the relationship between emotional intelligence and life satisfaction. The findings suggest that higher emotional intelligence may lower perceived stress and appears to have a positive effect in relation to life satisfaction and psychological resilience.
Conclusion
Individuals working in the field of mental health need to help individuals increase their level of EI, which may help reduce the level of perceived stress and increase psychological resilience and life satisfaction.
... However, stress would more often manifest as negative stress, thereby resulting in low plasticity and persistent homeostatic dysregulation. 3 In the study, the psychosomatic state denotes the amalgamation of biological, psychological, and social factors that encompass the responses from physiological and emotional aspects, cognitive appraisal, and the influences of the social and environmental milieu, suggesting that stress responses may integrate biological, social, and psychological components, usually resulting in the non-specific response of the body to any demand. 4 Interestingly, the placebo effects are also dependent on the interactions of social, psychological, and biological factors. 1 Besides an individual's genetic predispositions, the personality traits, beliefs, expectations, and prior experiences of the individual also influence both stress and placebo responses. 3,5,6 The term "placebo" refers to a matter without a pharmacologically active effect that is believed to possess therapeutic benefits. ...
... Moreover, the hormone signaling pathways also contain common molecules, such as glucocorticoids and nuclear receptor subfamily 3 group c member 1 (NR3C1). 4,9 Glucocorticoids are steroid hormones that regulate immune reactions, and their secretion by the adrenal cortex is controlled by adrenocorticotropic hormone. NR3C1 is a glucocorticoid receptor and acts as a transcription factor that binds to glucocorticoid response elements within the promoter regions of glucocorticoid-responsive genes to activate their transcription. ...
... Common mental health problems (CMHPs) include psychological stress, anxiety and depression .The global prevalence of depression has been estimated to be 5.0% in adults, 5.7% in the elderly and 3.8% in the total population [1]. Consistently, the prevalence of depression is higher among women than men [1,2]. In 2015, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that worldwide nearly 264 million people were suffering from anxiety [1]. ...
... These mental health problems were more common in women than in men [4]. Mental disorders can lead to other complicated health conditions such as hypertension, heart attacks, obesity and addiction [2,5]. ...
Background
Higher levels of methyl donor nutrients may be associated with better psychological conditions. Little is known about the association of methyl donor nutrients with psychological conditions among women especially in Asian countries such as Afghanistan.
Method
This cross-sectional study was conducted in Kabul, Afghanistan to assess the association of methyl donor nutrients with common psychological conditions (depression, anxiety and stress) among reproductive-aged women using multistage random sampling to choose one health center from each municipality out of four cardinal directions. Finally a sample of 421 reproductive-aged women with a mean BMI of 23.3 ± 5.0 kg/m2 and an age range of 15–45 years were collected. All women’s dietary intakes were obtained using a 24-recall questionnaire. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale − 21 Items (DASS-21) was used to assess psychological conditions. Chi-square tests and one-way ANOVAs were performed to assess general characteristics. Residual model test while adjusting for energy intake was used to assess nutrient intake of methyl donor nutrients and food groups. We fitted logistic regression models to assess risk for Common mental health problems (CMHPs) based on methyl donor tertiles.
Result
We observed that there is no significant association between methyl donor nutrients and psychological disorders in both crude and adjusted models (depression, OR = 0.95, CI: 0.48; 1.88; anxiety, OR = 0.88, CI: 0.43, 1.79; stress, OR = 0.73, CI: 0.38, 1.40), ( p > 0.05).
Conclusion
Overall, we did not find any significant association between methyl donor nutrients and depression, anxiety and stress.
... However, urban life prevents complete recovery from tensions and exposes humans to constant stress. Stress contributes between 70% and 80% to the occurrence or worsening of diseases and WHO has announced it as the most serious challenge of the 21st century (Fink, 2017). ...
... Hans Selye first used the term "stress" in 1935 to explain tension factors in living creatures (Fink, 2017). Since then, stress studies have adopted various epidemiological, psychological, and biological approaches (Cohen et al., 2016). ...
Objectives
To identify how quality and design of streets impacts urban stress.
Background
Few studies have comprehensively addressed environmental factors affecting stress in urban public spaces. However, a remarkable portion of our everyday life is spent in public spaces, particularly streets.
Method
This study seeks to evaluate the effect of three types of streets as major public spaces on stress. These include a street with the dominance of green spaces (A), a motorist-oriented street (B), and a pedestrian street (C). For this purpose, we selected a group of participants ( n = 16) aged 20-30, with an equal number of men and women who were generally healthy and had normal stress levels. Participants were asked to wear an electroencephalogram (EEG) headset, walk different streets, and answer the Perceived Restorativeness Scale (PRS) and urban design qualities questionnaires.
Results
According to the results, participants experienced the highest stress in street type B and the lowest in type A.
Conclusions
Green space and vegetation, a sense of security, privacy and coziness, climatic comfort, and safety of space had the most positive effect on stress reduction. Whereas noise pollution, vehicle traffic, and crowdedness were the most critical factors of stress. Finally, our findings suggest that the component of green space has a more significant effect on stress reduction compared with the elimination of vehicle traffic.
... El estrés, denominado por la Organización Mundial de la Salud como la "epidemia sanitaria del siglo XXI" (WHO, 2020), se caracteriza por un estado psicológico en el que los individuos sienten que las demandas que enfrentan superan sus recursos para afrontarlas (Fink, 2017). Los estudiantes universitarios, debido a la presión académica y a factores ambientales y sociales, son especialmente propensos al estrés en comparación con la población en general (Karaman et al., 2019;Raufelder et al., 2018). ...
El objetivo de esta investigación fue determinar el estado de depresión, ansiedad y estrés en estudiantes de Cultura Física y Deporte posterior a la pandemia, así como detectar una relación entre estos trastornos y los factores de la escala DASS-21, considerando las diferencias de género. Se utilizó un estudio descriptivo, correlacional y transversal en una muestra no aleatoria por conveniencia de 245 participantes. El estudio reveló que el 39.2% de los participantes presentaba síntomas de depresión, el 53.1% experimentaba algún grado de ansiedad, y el 42.4% informó sentir algún nivel de estrés. Además, se encontraron relaciones significativas entre los niveles de depre-sión y ansiedad (rs= 0.715; p < .01), depresión y estrés (rs=0.767; p < .01), así como ansiedad y estrés (rs=0.759; p < .01). Se observó que la depresión y el estrés afectaron más a las mujeres, con un 46.6% y 55.7%, respectivamente, en comparación con los hombres, donde se registró un 35% para ambos casos (p = .043 y p = .002, respectivamente). Por otro lado, aunque la ansiedad afectó al 56.8% de las mujeres y al 51% de los hombres, no se encontraron diferencias significativas entre ambos géneros (p = .110). Es fundamental implementar intervenciones dirigidas a abordar la salud mental de los estudiantes, tanto en situaciones de crisis como en contextos más estables.
... Teachers, as front-line workers in the education system, were tasked with quickly implementing new teaching practices in ways that promoted student learning while maximizing student safety. As known from previous studies, any restruc turing of the organism and its adaptation to changed conditions is accompanied by the experience of stress (Fink, 2017). An important question that psychologists have been investigating for more than half a century is how to cope with stress as safely as possible and what strategies can help in this coping (Lazarus, & Folkman, 1984). ...
В рамках исследования изучался опыт учителей во время дистан- ционного обучения в условиях пандемии COVID-19 и локдауна весной 2020 года, их оценка переживаемого ими психологического стресса и факторов, влияющих на него, а также стратегий, при помощи которых они пытались себе помочь. В данной статье мы представляем описание уникального кейса успешной организации рабо- ты в изменившихся условиях. В работе представлен анализ интервью с учителями из одной частной немецко-русской школы города Берлина (ФРГ). Интервью состояло из следующих тематических блоков: а) об изменениях в жизни и работе, б) о субъективной оценке учителей: находятся ли они в стрессе и какие стратегии совлада- ния они используют, в) о представлениях учителей о будущем: как будут выглядеть их жизнь и работа после пандемии. Результаты интервью были проанализированы с помощью контент-анализа. Было выявлено, что административная и техническая поддержка школы и сохранение нагрузки почти на том же уровне, что и до перехода на дистанционное обучение, снижают уровень психологического стресса. По результа- там работы также были определены продуктивные стратегии совладания со стрессом: позитивное переосмысление ситуации; поиск социальной поддержки; поддержание баланса между работой и личной жизнью посредством заботы о себе, физической активности и хобби. Обсуждается прикладное значение настоящих выводов.
This study investigated teachers’ experience of distant teaching in conditions of COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown in spring 2020 and aimed to present a successful case of teachers organizing their work and maintaining their mental health under the pressure of the pandemic. To achieve this aim, a case study design was chosen, and interviews with five teachers from one of Berlin’s private bilingual Russian-German schools were conducted. The interviews included blocks of questions on a) the changing context of work and life, b) stress level self-assessment and coping strategies used, and c) teachers’ ideas about the future. Furthermore, the results of the interviews were generated through content analysis. The findings of the present case identified several supportive factors that decrease psychological stress: school administrative and technical support and the maintenance of workload at almost the same level as that before the transition to distant teaching. Other coping strategies that act as preventive factors supporting mental health were also identified: positive rethinking of the situation; seeking social support; and maintaining worklife balance through self-care, physical activities and hobbies. Implications of the present findings are provided.
... The stress is an unavoidable condition that every individual is bound to experience regardless of their socio-demographic variations. Fink (2016) and Fink (2017) described the stress as a psychophysiological reaction that occurs in response to felt demands. In the context of nursing students, stress is considered an overload of tension that is generated by demanding situations or pressure either from academic or other life events, which may lead to different mental health challenges. ...
The literature has indicated that nursing students are among the healthcare students that experience higher level of stress; which makes it imperative to provide them with relevant skills 151 ©Copyright 2023 by the author(s) This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. they can employ to overcome stressful life conditions. This study thus adopted mindfulness skills intervention to alleviate stress manifestations among nursing students in Ilorin metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria. The objectives of the study were to examine the effect of mindfulness skills training on physical, behavioural and psychological manifestations of stress among the participants. Using a quasi-experimental study of the pre-test, post-test design, three null hypotheses guided the conduct of this study. The population of the study consisted of 234 University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital nursing school students. A purposive sampling technique was used to select 15 participants in the treatment group. An adapted "Stress Questionnaire" (with a Reliability Index of .88) from Sinha et al. (2016) was used for data collection. The data collected were analysed using percentage and paired t-test was used to test the null hypotheses formulated at .05 level of significance. The findings revealed that mindfulness skills intervention reduced the physical (t = 19.17, p < .05); behavioural (t = 11.25, p < .05); and psychological (t = 11.51, p < .05) manifestations of stress among the study participants. Based on these findings, it was concluded that mindfulness skills intervention is not only applicable in clinical setting but can also be applied in an educational environment; hence, a comprehensive knowledge of the process and steps involved in these training becomes imperative for school counsellors to avail themselves with for imparting positive change in clients who are going through stressful situations. Therefore, it was recommended, among others, that professional counsellors should equip nursing students with such skills in order to help them overcome the physical, behavioural and psychological manifestations of stress.
... It manifests as anticipatory anxiety, increased mental Table 1 Inclusion and exclusion criteria and physiological arousal, and emotional tension. This phenomenon affects various aspects of an individual's cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physiological processes (Blackburn & Epel, 2017;Fink, 2017). We coded both studies of stress and those of anxiety uniformly as studies of stress. ...
This study provides a comprehensive overview of methodological aspects when using heart rate variability (HRV) measures in educational research. Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, we searched four databases for relevant studies published until March 5, 2024. From the 48 studies reviewed, we extracted data across three analytical categories: (1) area of study interest and participant populations, (2) data collection and analysis methodologies, and (3) the concurrent and predictive validity of HRV measurement for educational research. Study quality was evaluated using QualSyst assessment criteria. Most studies measured stress and enlisted undergraduate students as participants. Data were predominately collected using wearable devices, measuring HRV for durations of less than 30 min, and in varied contexts, including during exams, while learning, and in experiments. The parameters analyzed varied within both time and frequency domains. HRV data had a moderate level of concurrent validity as a measure of stress in an educational context. The concurrent validity of HRV data for measuring attention remains uncertain with insufficient evidence. Limited correlations appeared between stress and performance. The findings, potentials, and limitations of HRV measures are discussed, and synthesized recommendations for educational research using HRV data are provided.
... For instance, the stress definitions of psychologists interested in endocrinological pathways are often vastly different from the stress definitions of psychologist focusing on stress in organizations or psychologists addressing the different strategies that individuals use to cope with stress (cf. Fink, 2017). Second, the stress concept is applied to a wide range of contexts, connecting research findings from genetics, biology, medicine, and psychology: "Cells respond to stress in a variety of ways" (Fulda, et al., 2010, p. 1)and so do rats in a laboratory, kids at school, and employees at their workplace. ...
Psychology is currently facing a multilayered crisis stemming from the fact that the results of many psychological studies cannot be replicated (replication crisis), that psychological research has neglected cross-cultural and cross-temporal variation (universality crisis), and that many psychological theories are ill-developed and underspecified (theory crisis). In the present article, we use ideas derived from debates in theoretical and philosophical psychology as a basis for responding to all three crises. In short, we claim that psychological concepts are inherently vague in the sense that their meanings and the rules for their application are indeterminate. This does not imply that psychological concepts are ineffable or lack meaning. It implies, however, that hoping to arrive at a finite set of necessary and sufficient criteria that define psychological concepts once and for all is an illusion. From this, we deduce four recommendations for responding to psychology’s crises. First, we argue that the replication crisis could be approached by paying more attention to the context conditions under which psychological realities and knowledge about these realities are being created. Second, we claim that the universality crisis can be alleviated by putting more effort into exploring variability across times and cultures. Third, we contend that acknowledging the language dependence of psychological research could be a fruitful way of addressing the theory crisis. Last, we show that embracing theoretical and methodological pluralism would be an antidote against psychology’s crises in general.
... Stress is a major risk factor for serious illness. With adverse effects on various bodily organs, stress can impact students' mental as well as physical and emotional wellbeing [1]. Higher education institutions have increasingly recognized the importance of promoting student wellbeing as a core component of their mandate. ...
... Over time, numerous descriptions for stress evolved, which frequently blurs demarcation of research [12]. Therefore, this overview begins with a definition of mental stress as it is understood at present. ...
Numerous vital signs are reported in association with stress response assessment, but their application varies widely. This work provides an overview over methods for stress induction and strain assessment, and presents a multimodal experimental study to identify the most important vital signs for effective assessment of the response to acute mental stress. We induced acute mental stress in 65 healthy participants with the Mannheim Multicomponent Stress Test and acquired self-assessment measures (Likert scale, Self-Assessment Manikin), salivary α-amylase and cortisol concentrations as well as 60 vital signs from biosignals, such as heart rate variability parameters, QT variability parameters, skin conductance level, and breath rate. By means of statistical testing and a self-optimizing logistic regression, we identified the most important biosignal vital signs. Fifteen biosignal vital signs related to ventricular repolarization variability, blood pressure, skin conductance, and respiration showed significant results. The logistic regression converged with QT variability index, left ventricular work index, earlobe pulse arrival time, skin conductance level, rise time and number of skin conductance responses, breath rate, and breath rate variability (F1 = 0.82). Self-assessment measures indicated successful stress induction. α-amylase and cortisol showed effect sizes of -0.78 and 0.55, respectively. In summary, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis and sympathetic nervous system were successfully activated. Our findings facilitate a coherent and integrative understanding of the assessment of the stress response and help to align applications and future research concerning acute mental stress.
... The oldest definition of stress is that the body and mind's nonspecific reaction to any stimulus is stress (Selye, 1956). In psychology, stress is defined as the perceived threat accompanying anxious discomfort, emotional strain, and difficulties in adaptation (Fink, 2016). In contrast, Griffin (2021) defined it as an individual's reaction to a potent stimulus (known as a stressor). ...
PURPOSE: The global COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted multiple sectors across industries and regions, including medical services, financial institutions, and others. The escalating global pandemic in both emerging and developed nations has resulted in the implementation of stringent lockdown measures and unparalleled disruptions to economic activities. Consequently, individuals have become accustomed to relying on banking operations as a routine aspect of their lives, regardless of the circumstances. Learning how bankers engage with customers in response to the given circumstances would be intriguing. Hence, the study aimed to unearth the relationship between bankers' job stress, job performance, and job commitment, as well as the stress-based job performance and its impact on job commitment during the second to third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in an emerging market. METHODOLOGY: A number of 287 data (response rate 71.75 percent) were collected by online platforms due to the COVID-19 pandemic through the simple random sampling technique. The exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modeling were run to test the proposed research framework with the help of MS Excel 2007, SPSS 22.0, and AMOS 23.0. FINDINGS: The findings showed that bankers' work-related stress has a positive impact on job performance but no relationship with job commitment; acute stress has a negative impact on job commitment but no significant relationship with job performance; and stress-based job performance has a significant positive impact on job commitment during the COVID-19 pandemic. IMPLICATIONS: The outcomes of this study provide value JEL codes: M20, D23, I15 / 204 / Bankers' job stress, job performance, and job commitment trajectories during the COVID-19 pandemic to the field of behavioral science by introducing the phenomena of COVID-19 in the context of bankers and emerging economies. The demographic variables and the revealed relationships of bankers' job stress, job performance, and job commitment trajectories would help policymakers rethink stress management practices and policy building in the bank job and the long-term relationship building with their existing employees. ORIGINALITY AND VALUE: The novelty of the research is the COVID-19 phenomenon and an emerging economy's bankers' context.
... According to Hans Selye "Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand". (Fink, 2016) Speed of news in 24 Hour News Cycle activates stress among journalists amid their job security/life security. In the face of a situation amid speed of 24-Hour News Cycle the journalist formulates an approach how to cope with a stressful event during the process and this type of situation requires immediate action. ...
The research aims to explore the impact of the speed of 24-hour news cycle on the performance of journalists. The Population of this study was enrolled members of the press club of Islamabad. The convenient sampling technique has been used for this study. For this research, the researcher critically adapted the Transactional model of stress and formulated the most relevant items for a closed-ended questionnaire. The main approach of this study was quantitative, beside this semi-structured interview were also conducted as well. The study has explored that there is presence of stress amid speed of 24-hourNews Cycle, but a strong element of defensive mechanism is also there.
... Difficulty in managing stress is now the single most widely reported modern malaise (Jackson, 2014). According to the World Health Organisation, stress is a significant health epidemic of the 21st century (Fink, 2017). A strong correlation has been argued between abnormal stress levels and people living and working in urban areas (Ganesh et al., 2018;Arora et al., 2019;Lecic-Tosevski, 2019). ...
This research aims to explore the role of nature therapy guides in successfully leading nature-based experiences and, through that effort, allowing their clients to achieve their mental health and well-being goals. Understanding the role a nature therapy guide plays can, in turn, aid policymakers, individuals and communities in promoting positive mental health and well-being outcomes, supporting conservation efforts, and improving access to nature experiences. Here a nature therapy guide is defined as a trained professional who helps individuals or groups connect with nature to promote mental health and well-being. Nature therapy guides may have a variety of backgrounds, including naturalists, ecologists, psychologists, or healthcare professionals, with most of which completing some form of nature therapy qualification. Nature therapy guides may work in a variety of settings, such as parks, forests, beaches, or gardens, and may tailor their approach to different populations, such as children, adults, or seniors. They may also incorporate elements of ecotherapy, which emphasises the connection between human well-being and the health of the natural environment. To this end, this research answers two interrelated research questions. Firstly what motivations have guides found that bring the general public (i.e., clients) to them and, in turn,
... According to the World Health Organization, stress has been defined as the "Health Epidemic of the 21st Century". Indeed, the physical and psychological burden caused by long stress period is increasing [33]. Stressful situation can affect quality of sleep, provoking fatigue, irritability, and concentration difficulties. ...
Background: Post-delivery period could be characterized by psychological distress (e.g., anxiety, sadness, and irritability), leading to post-partum depression (PPD). Objective: The present clinical study assess the effect of probiotic supplementation containing Limosilactobacillus reuteri PBS072 and Bifidobacterium breve BB077 (4x109 CFU/day) on mother’s mood and breastfeeding quality during the first trimester after delivery. Methods: A Randomized Double Blind Controlled (RDBPC) trial has been carried out in 200 healthy new mothers divided into an active group taking a supplement containing Limosilactobacillus reuteri PBS072 and Bifidobacterium breve BB077 (4x109 CFU/day) plus multivitamins, and a control group (multivitamin complex only) for 90 days. Symptoms related to maternal depression and breastfeeding quality were evaluated at days 45 and 90 by Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale Short-Form (BSES-SF). Results: At days 45 and 90, probiotic treatment significantly ameliorated the mothers’ mood compared to the control treatment (p<0.001). Likewise, breastfeeding quality and baby’s cries significantly improved in the probiotic group (p<0.001). Conclusions: Microbiota alterations could influence post-delivery woman’s mental state. According to our results, L. reuteri PBS072 and B. breve BB077 are potential candidates able to improve stress resilience in the post-partum period.
... Stress is an inevitable feeling that everyone undergoes in day-to-day life [1]. Stress is a normal physiological response that helps us to notice unusual or unexpected threats in and around us. ...
Ocimum tenuiflorum is a sacred medicinal plant bestowed with multiple health benefits. This plant is traditionally considered an adaptogen. Many scientific studies have indicated the anti-stress potential of Ocimum tenuiflorum but with higher doses. The present study investigated the effects of HolixerTM (a clinically studied standardized Ocimum tenuiflorum extract) on modulating stress using two in vivo models, namely the swim endurance study in mice and forced swim test in rats. In addition, we explored the mechanism of action of HolixerTM on the HPA axis using two in vitro cell-based assays to check for its inhibitory effect on cortisol release and CRF1 receptor antagonistic activity. Ocimum tenuiflorum extract enhanced the swimming time in mice, reduced the stress-induced increase in immobility time, and prevented the increase in corticosterone in rats subjected to the forced swim test. Further, Ocimum tenuiflorum extract inhibited cortisol release and exhibited a significant CRF1 receptor antagonist activity. Thus, Ocimum tenuiflorum extract was found effective in managing stress, and the effect could be due to the inhibition of cortisol release and the antagonistic effect on the CRF1 receptors.
... Stres memiliki definisi yang luas berkaitan dengan keadaan dan individu yang mengalaminya. Secara umum stres merupakan respons tubuh yang tidak spesifik terhadap suatu stimulus atau stresor (Fink, 2017;Gaol, 2016). Berdasarkan data Riset Kesehatan Dasar (Riskesdas) Kementerian Kesehatan tahun 2018, kejadian gangguan mental emosional di Indonesia memiliki prevalensi 9,8% di mana terdapat peningkatan jika dibandingkan dengan prevalensi pada tahun 2013 yaitu 6% (Kementerian Kesehatan RI, 2018). ...
Stres akademik selama perkuliahan daring ketika pandemi covid 19 menunjukan level yang cukup tinggi, karena berkurangnya interaksi langsung antar mahasiswa yang menimbulkan berbagai stresor mengakibatkan penurunan fokus dalam belajar serta pemahaman materi. Upaya yang dapat dilakukan dalam mengurangi stres yaitu menjauhi stresor dan melakukan aktivitas yang menyenangkan salah satunya adalah berinteraksi dengan hewan peliharaan. Tujuan penelitian ini yaitu menggambarkan perbedaan tingkat stres pada mahasiswa Fakultas Kedokteran dan Fakultas Kedokteran gigi Universitas Padjadjaran yang memiliki hewan peliharaan dan tidak memiliki hewan peliharaan, mengetahui interaksi mahasiswa dengan hewan peliharaannya, mengetahui gambaran mengenai peranan hewan peliharaan sebagai stress reliever pada mahasiswa. Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian analitik kategorik, dengan desain cross sectional. Melibatkan 100 mahasiswa aktif Fakultas Kedokteran dan Fakultas Kedokteran gigi. Pengumpulan data menggunakan kuesioner daring. Kemudian dianalisis setiap variabelnya meliputi karakteristik umum responden, jenis hewan peliharaan serta karakteristik pemeliharaan, dan tingkat stres responden. Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa tidak terdapat hubungan yang signifikan antara kepemilikan hewan dengan tingkat stres karena didapatkan hasil uji chi square p value >0,05 dan nilai hitung lebih besar daripada nilai tabel. Pada penelitian ini tidak terdapat hubungan yang signifikan antara tingkat interaksi responden dengan tingkat stres yang ditunjukan dengan hasil uji korelasi pearson p >0,05. Kata-kata kunci: Pelepas stres, hewan peliharaan, stres mahasiswa.
... According to Hans Selye "Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand". (Fink, 2016) Speed of news in 24 Hour News Cycle activates stress among journalists amid their job security/life security. In the face of a situation amid speed of 24-Hour News Cycle the journalist formulates an approach how to cope with a stressful event during the process and this type of situation requires immediate action. ...
The research aims to explore the impact of the speed of 24-hour news cycle on the performance of journalists. The Population of this study was enrolled members of the press club of Islamabad. The convenient sampling technique has been used for this study. For this research, the researcher critically adapted the Transactional model of stress and formulated the most relevant items for a closed-ended questionnaire. The main approach of this study was quantitative, beside this semi-structured interview were also conducted as well. The study has explored that there is presence of stress amid speed of 24-hourNews Cycle, but a strong element of defensive mechanism is also there.
... Stress merupakan suatu kondisi yang normal terjadi, akan tetapi dapat mengganggu kesehatan jika seseorang tidak dapat mengatasinya (APA, 2021;Fink, 2017;Kemenkes, 2018). Penyebab stress yang dialami oleh orang tua di masa pandemi dapat bersumber dari stressor umum dalam rumah tangga maupun stressor yang lebih spesifik seperti pengasuhan anak (Quillan & Bates, 2017). ...
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought various changes to people's lives as well as created stressors in various aspects of life. The mothers with school-aged children could feel quite heavy stress, because at that age the child already has his own desires but does not yet have the autonomy so that the mother must exercise a tight control. This study aims to determine the description of stress in mothers with school-aged children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The research design used was quantitative research with analytical descriptive method. The sampling method was probability sampling with cluster sampling. After analysing the data, the results showed that the general stress variable for mothers was classified as mild with a mean of 0.83 and a standard deviation of 0.77, with a minimum and maximum value of 0 and 5. Meanwhile, specific stress was classified as high, with a mean of 3.95 with a standard deviation. 0.72, and a minimum-maximum value of 1-5. Further analysis showed that the specific stress which appears on mothers is mostly caused by economic difficulties (30.3%) and accompanying children during online school (41.8%). This study is expected to provide an overview for nurses about the stress experienced by school-age mothers and their risk factors.
... Stress was defined by Hans Selye in 1936 as "the non-specific response of the body to any demand" (Fink, 2017). The bodies create a response from emotional or physical tension and pressure that come from an uncontrollable situation, leading to depression, anxiety, or any related health problems (Vaidya et al., n.d.). ...
Recent studies have developed forest-themed VR-based applications for reducing stress. The lack of interaction between users and the virtual environment made users become demotivated and bored. Therefore, there is a need to integrate game elements into the application. Gamification is widely known to increase user motivation. Therefore, this paper focused on identifying suitable game elements to be implemented in the existing frameworks for enhancement. Several game elements were identified able to enhance user motivation. The game elements were grouped into three; feedback, rewards and goals. Each of the game elements consists of two types(feedback: progress bar and scorecard; rewards: points and new content) with the exception of goals game elements. It should be noted that the preliminary model is a conceptual model and has not been validated yet. Therefore, the game elements will be integrated into a forest-themed VR application to evaluate its effectiveness.
... The World Health Organization has recognized stress as the "global epidemic of the 21st century" [1]. Various factors-from geopolitical and societal to individual and interpersonal-can contribute to an individual's stress. ...
We regularly face stress during our everyday activities, to the extent that stress is recognized by the World Health Organization as the epidemic of the 21st century. Stress is how humans respond physically and psychologically to adjustments, experiences, conditions, and circumstances in their lives. While there are many reasons for stress, work and job pressure remain the main cause. Thus, companies are increasingly interested in creating healthier, more comfortable, and stress-free offices for their workers. The indoor environment can induce environmental stress when it cannot satisfy the individual needs for health and comfort. In fact, office environmental conditions (e.g., thermal, and indoor air conditions, lighting, and noise) and interior design parameters (e.g., office layout, colors, furniture, access to views, distance to window, personal control and biophilic design) have been found to affect office workers' stress levels. A line of research based on the stress recovery theory offers new insights for establishing offices that limit environmental stress and help with work stress recovery. To that end, this paper answers ten questions that explore the relation between the indoor office-built environment and stress levels among workers. The answers to the ten questions are based on an extensive literature review to draw conclusions from what has been achieved to date. Thus, this study presents a foundation for future environmental stress related research in offices.
... There are various stimuli that can potentially lead to chronic stress with occupational stressors being among the most eminent ones in industrialized societies (Quick and Henderson 2016). In fact, stress has become so ubiquitous in the modern world that the World Health Organization labelled it as the health epidemic of the 21st century (Fink 2017). Consequently, stress at the workplace is among the leading causes for occupational diseases (Cannizzaro et al. 2019). ...
Chronic stress at work is ubiquitous in modern societies. However, its influence on atopic dermatitis (AD) has hardly been investigated. This study aimed to elucidate the association between work-related stress and AD via a longitudinal study. The analysis comprised data from three phases (2002-2003, 2007-2009, 2017-2018) of the prospective Study on Occupational Allergy Risks (SOLAR), including 1240 young adults aged 16 to 18 years at baseline (61% female) that were originally recruited for the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood Phase II in 1995-96. Atopic dermatitis was assessed at all three phases based upon self-reports of a physician’s diagnosis and symptoms. Work-related stress was measured at all three periods using the work discontent and work overload scales from the Trier Inventory for the Assessment of Chronic Stress with adaptions to school and university. Generalized estimating equations were used to analyze the association between stress and atopic dermatitis, treating work discontent and work overload first as continuous and then as categorical exposure variables. We observed 50 AD cases (4%) at SOLAR I, 48 (4%) at SOLAR II and 42 (3%) at SOLAR III. A one-point increase in the work discontent score was associated with an Odds Ratio (OR) for AD of 1.05 (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 1.00-1.10). The respective increase in the work overload score lead to an OR of 1.03 (95% CI 0.99-1.06). In the categorical analysis, there was no clear indication of elevated odds of AD in the highest vs. lowest exposure group (4th vs 1st quartile: OR 1.53, 95% CI 0.92-2.53 for work discontent; OR 1.38, 95% CI 0.83-2.27 for work overload). Altogether, we observed limited to no evidence for an association between work-related stress and AD. Our study’s ability to detect stronger evidence may have been compromised by shortcomings like non-differential misclassification of the outcome or insufficient statistical precision due to small numbers of AD cases. Another explanation could be that AD predominantly becomes evident in childhood, not in adulthood.
... -Work stress can be described as an emotion in which the individual cannot adapt his/her skills, resources and requirements to the needs of work (Fink, 2017). ...
The purpose of the paper is to investigate the interaction of human resource management, strategic leadership, role conflict, job commitment, and job stress of employees in a public tourism organization. The value of this paper lies in the fact that human resources are undoubtedly the most important asset for both private tourism businesses and public tourist organizations (Ntalakos, Belias, & Koustelios, 2022a; Ntalakos, Belias, & Tsigilis, 2022b; Belias & Trihas, 2022a). The success or failure of the goals set by the respective administration depends on this. The above variables interact with each other and affect employee performance, as strategic leadership decisions will affect job stress and job commitment (Belias, Rossidis, Sotiriou, & Malik, 2022). The empirical data used in this paper has been derived from quantitative research which occurred in a sample of 190 persons working in hotels. The outcome of the research is that strategic leadership has an effect on work stress, while it also affects job commitment and the lack of a sense of belonging to the organization. Furthermore, role conflicts affect both job commitment with work stress, while work stress has also an effect on job commitment. An important conclusion is that work stress is not a moderator variable for the examined relationships. Based on the outcome of the research, the recommendation is that public Greek organizations need to empower their human resource management so to increase the job commitment and the leadership capacity of their employees but also to make sure that the work environment is able to reduce stress.
... Stress is among the most common health threats, increases the need for doctor visits, and imposes a heavy burden on global healthcare systems. The detection of the stress limit can help enhance health, quality of life, and wellbeing [1]. Today, researchers are focused on different methods for automatic stress detection and analyzing brain processes. ...
Stress has been a common disorder in human societies and numerous studies have been conducted on the early diagnosis of stress. Previous studies have shown that it is possible to diagnose stress using eye tracking data. This study aimed to obtain a new and significant method for detecting parameters of the eye tracker and electrodermal activity signal by discrimination of “stress” vs. “relaxation” and to achieve higher accuracy than previous research. We used a Stroop task and a mathematical stressor task in which stress elements were placed in a novel design to separate stress from relaxation in the Stroop task and evaluate three levels of stress in the mathematical task. In the present study, we recorded the eye tracking data of fifteen participants and thoroughly investigated the pupil diameter (PD) and electrodermal activity (EDA) features to discriminate different stress states. After preprocessing, several features were extracted and selected. Then, the features were used for classification by applying support vector machine, linear discriminant analysis, and k-nearest neighbor classifiers. The linear discriminant analysis classifier, for which the accuracy was 88.43% in the Stroop and 91.10% in the mathematical, showed higher accuracy than the other classifiers when using PD and EDA features. Also, PD features demonstrated more reliability and ability to differentiate stress from relaxation compared to traditional EDA.
... The effects of stress on emotional and physical health have been an interesting topic since ancient times [7,8]. Stress can be basically defined as the response to mental or physical pressure. ...
Objective: A significant proportion of patients with seborrheic dermatitis state that disease attacks are triggered by psychological stress and disease severity increases during stressful times. This study aimed to determine the relationship between disease severity and perceived stress and depression levels in patients with seborrheic dermatitis. Patients and Methods: The patients’ demographic characteristics, medical history, and Seborrheic Dermatitis Area Severity Index (SDASI), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores were recorded, and the relationship between disease severity and the scale scores were statistically analyzed by comparing disease severity groups and using correlation analyses. Results: The study included 120 patients with seborrheic dermatitis. The mean age of the patients was 29.5±8.2 years, and the female/ male ratio was 49/71. According to disease severity, 66 (55%) patients were classified as mild, 30(25%) moderate, and 24 (20%) as severe seborrheic dermatitis. When the scale scores were evaluated, a significant positive correlation was found between SDASI and PSS (r=0.767, p
In this essay, I will briefly sample different instances of the utilization of the concept of resilience, attempting to complement a comprehensive representation of the field in the special issue of Development and Psychopathology inspired by the 42nd Minnesota Symposium on Child Psychology, hosted by the Institute of Child Development at the University of Minnesota and held in October of 2022. Having established the general context of the field, I will zoom in on some of its features, which I consider “low-hanging fruit” and which can be harvested in a systematic way to advance the study of resilience in the context of the future of developmental psychopathology.
Leadership and strategy are two concepts that have a direct connection and a strong correlation. An organization is not created to stand still; it has a mission and a dynamic to grow and be sustainable. Strategy is the action to achieve organizational goals. Leaders, through their leadership, play a key role in shaping strategy and are responsible for HOW they will inspire their employees, HOW they will cultivate the organizational climate and HOW the strategy will be implemented. Setting goals is the responsibility of the leadership, which sets the standards for organizational members. In addition, the leadership is responsible for the efficient use of the available resources and the end result in terms of organizational performance. However, achieving organizational goals is a collective matter and concerns all the human resources of an educational organization. Management by Objectives is a tool that establishes a common line in an organization and helps to win the commitment of employees. This is a way of ensuring their broad participation so as to achieve a better organizational performance that will approach the desired result.
This chapter:
Develops strategic leadership in depth
Analyses Management by Objectives as a participative approach
Investigates the role of leadership in organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
Maternal stress has been identified as an epidemic that has a detrimental effect on work productivity and personal and professional growth. Objectives: To determine maternal stress and its associated factors among working nurses in public sector tertiary care teaching hospitals in Karachi, Sindh. Methods: The analytical cross-sectional study was accomplished at Dr. Ruth K.M Pfau Civil Hospital Karachi and Dow University Hospital Karachi. A total of 131 nurses were approached by a convenient non-probability sampling method. The Parental Stress Scale was used for data collection. Data were entered and analyzed by using SPSS version 24.0. Chi-square test was applied out to find an association between maternal stress and associated factors. Results: Nurses reported 72 (55%) mild parental stress, 58 (44.3%) parental moderate stress, and 1 (1%) severe parental stress. Nurses belonging to the younger age group, widowed or divorced, had mild parental stress, while nurses who lived with their husbands had lesser moderate stress. Female participants with one child of either gender, whose more family members were earning, had less tendency to have mild parental stress. A statistically significant association was found between working nurses' parental stress level and age group (p-value=0.005). Conclusions: It was concluded that nurses reported mild, moderate, and severe maternal stress. Hence, it is increasingly imperative to create facilities like daycare centers and offer them the flexibility to perform their job effectively
Background
Medical students are prone to high levels of perceived stress and anxiety, which can negatively impact their academic performance, as well as their physical and mental health. This study aimed to assess the main stressors, levels of perceived stress and anxiety, and their predictors among medical students.
Design and methods
A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 1696 medical students at Helwan University. A cross-sectional study was designed to evaluate their perceived stress, stressors, and anxiety using the Perceived Stress Scale, Medical Students Stressor Questionnaire, and Beck Anxiety Inventory, respectively.
Results
Approximately 93% of medical students experienced moderate to high levels of stress, while 54.9% of medical students experienced moderate to concerning levels of anxiety. The main stressors were academic, teaching, social, intrapersonal, group activity, and desire-related stressors. Risk factors associated with higher perceived stress included being female, young age, living away from the family, obtaining lower academic percentages, having psychiatric, neurological, or other chronic medical illnesses, and experiencing higher levels of academic, intrapersonal, drive, and group activities-related stressors. Risk factors for higher anxiety included being female, residing in rural areas, having psychiatric, neurological, or other chronic medical illnesses, perceiving a high level of stress, and experiencing higher levels of academic, intrapersonal, and social-related stressors.
Conclusions
The findings indicate that a significant proportion of medical students experience various levels of stress and anxiety. These results underscore the urgent need for a stress management program, to help medical students to cope with different stressors.
The Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa (NRCA) did not escape this existential crisis of conflict. It manifests in various ways resulting in the bleeding of congregations, the exodus of congregants and the closure of congregations, as many congregants that declare themselves as members of the Church do not attend worship services or participate in the Holy Communion and exit the church. The study was conducted in the NRCA to determine the effect and response formation of observed conflict by ministers in their respective congregations. The results of the study indicate that pastors and/or ministers do suffer emotional trauma because of the conflict in the congregation which, according to their own statements results in a loss of role performance. We provide an overview of the problem statement and methodology of the study. We discuss an abbreviated, theoretical perspective on conflict as a social phenomenon. We present the findings of our study and conclude with an abbreviated process to equip pastors with the necessary emotional maturity and self-management.Contribution: This study uncovers emotional trauma experienced by ministers, affecting their role performance. We offer a succinct problem statement, research methodology, and propose a scientifically informed process to enhance ministers’ emotional resilience within the NRCA.
The Netherdutch Reformed Church of Africa (NRCA) did not escape this existential crisis of conflict. It manifests in various ways resulting in the bleeding of congregations, the exodus of congregants and the closure of congregations, as many congregants that declare themselves as members of the Church do not attend worship services or participate in the Holy Communion and exit the church. The study was conducted in the NRCA to determine the effect and response formation of observed conflict by ministers in their respective congregations. The results of the study indicate that pastors and/or ministers do suffer emotional trauma because of the conflict in the congregation which, according to their own statements results in a loss of role performance. We provide an overview of the problem statement and methodology of the study. We discuss an abbreviated, theoretical perspective on conflict as a social phenomenon. We present the findings of our study and conclude with an abbreviated process to equip pastors with the necessary emotional maturity and self-management. Contribution: This study uncovers emotional trauma experienced by ministers, affecting their role performance. We offer a succinct problem statement, research methodology, and propose a scientifically informed process to enhance ministers’ emotional resilience within the NRCA.
Nas últimas décadas, a obesidade está associada a diversos fatores, um deles é o comportamento alimentar hedônico decorrente do estresse, tendo como consequência o consumo de alimentos de alta palatabilidade e menor saciedade, bem como aumento do conteúdo calórico em cada refeição e alimentação de fora, feito em redes de fast-food, sendo assim o objetivo do presente estudo foi identificar a influência do estresse no comportamento alimentar. Trata-se de uma revisão bibliográfica realizada a partir de materiais elaborados, como livros e artigos científicos pesquisados na base de dados do Scielo, Biblioteca Virtual da Saúde (BVS) e buscadores, como o Google Acadêmico, publicados entre 2000 e setembro de 2022. Este estudo aponta a associação entre sentir-se estressado e a melhora após o consumo de alimentos ricos em calorias, como açúcar e gordura. Esta associação pode se tornar um comportamento manifestado mais tarde com menos consciência, tornando-se um hábito. Por meio dessa associação aprendida, as pessoas podem começar a usar os alimentos para aliviar incômodos leves, a fadiga e o estresse crônico de baixo nível, acarretando em obesidade. Foi concluído, que há um impacto significativo no comportamento alimentar de adultos estressados, alterando qualitativamente o consumo alimentar, ocasionando obesidade.
Background: The post-delivery period could be characterized by psychological distress (e.g., anxiety, sadness, and irritability), leading to postpartum depression (PPD). Objective: The present clinical study assesses the effect of probiotic supplementation containing Limosilactobacillus reuteri PBS072 and Bifidobacterium breve BB077 (4 × 109 CFU/day) on the mother’s mood and breastfeeding quality during the first trimester after delivery. Methods: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Controlled (RDBPC) trial was carried out on 200 healthy new mothers divided into an active group taking a supplement containing Limosilactobacillus reuteri PBS072 and Bifidobacterium breve BB077 (4 × 109 CFU/day) plus multivitamins and a control group (multivitamin complex only) for 90 days. Symptoms related to maternal depression and breastfeeding quality were evaluated at days 45 and 90 using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale—Short Form (BSES-SF). Results: At days 45 and 90, the probiotic treatment significantly ameliorated the mothers’ mood compared to the control treatment (p < 0.001). Likewise, the breastfeeding quality and the baby’s cries significantly improved in the probiotic group (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Microbiota alterations could influence a post-delivery woman’s mental state. According to our results, L. reuteri PBS072 and B. breve BB077 are potential candidates that are able to improve stress resilience in the postpartum period.
Background
There is increasing evidence that depression can be prevented; however, universal approaches have had limited success. Appropriate targeting of interventions to at-risk populations has been shown to have potential, but how to selectively determine at-risk individuals remains unclear. Workplace stress is a risk factor for depression and a target for intervention, but few interventions exist to prevent depression among workers at risk due to heightened stress.
Objective
This trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a smartphone-based intervention in reducing the onset of depression and improving related outcomes in workers experiencing at least moderate levels of stress.
MethodsA randomized controlled trial was conducted with participants who were currently employed and reported no clinically significant depression and at least moderate stress. The intervention group (n=1053) were assigned Anchored, a 30-day self-directed smartphone app-based cognitive behavioral- and mindfulness-based intervention. The attention-control group (n=1031) were assigned a psychoeducation website. Assessment was performed via web-based self-report questionnaires at baseline and at 1-, 3-, and 6-month postbaseline time points. The primary outcome was new depression caseness aggregated over the follow-up period. The secondary outcomes included depressive and anxiety symptoms, stress, well-being, resilience, work performance, work-related burnout, and quality of life. Analyses were conducted within an intention-to-treat framework using mixed modeling.
ResultsThere was no significant between-group difference in new depression caseness (z score=0.69; P=.49); however, those in the Anchored arm had significantly greater depressive symptom reduction at 1 month (Cohen d=0.02; P=.049) and 6 months (Cohen d=0.08; P=.03). Anchored participants also showed significantly greater reduction in anxiety symptoms at 1 month (Cohen d=0.07; P=.04) and increased work performance at 1 month (Cohen d=0.07; P=.008) and 6 months (Cohen d=0.13; P=.01), compared with controls. Notably, for Anchored participants completing at least two-thirds of the intervention, there was a significantly lower rate of depression onset (1.1%, 95% CI 0.0%-3.7%) compared with controls (9.0%, 95% CI 6.8%-12.3%) at 1 month (z score=4.50; P
Cancer is a disease with a high incidence that pediatric patients need parents during treatment. The situation became a source of stress for parents. One way to deal with stress is to be grateful that the psychological wellbeing of the caregivers who accompany children with cancer is maintained. This study aims to determine the relationship between stress and psychological wellbeing with the moderation of gratitude in the parents of children with cancer in Aceh. This study used a quantitative approach, involving 14 participants at the shelter for children with cancer undergoing treatment in Banda Aceh aged 20–40 years. Participants were selected using the non-probability sampling method and the incidental sampling technique. Individual stress levels were measured using the Perceived Stress Scale, wellbeing using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale, and gratitude using the Indonesian Grateful Scale. The data were analyzed using the Rank Spearman nonparametric test, showing no relationship between stress and psychological wellbeing, but there is a relationship between stress and gratitude and gratitude with psychological wellbeing. This result shows partially that gratitude has a relationship with stress and psychological wellbeing. It means that with gratitude, stress can be controlled and impacts the psychological wellbeing of parents accompanying children with cancer.
Stress is a universal phenomenon that can be experienced by everyone in everyday life. Stress can be defined as a condition that fully of worry and mental tension caused by a bad situation. It can cause negative impact to physical condition, psychological, intellectual and spiritual. The important thing that must be understood is how to control it in facing stress experienced. Health education as a community service activity is aim to provide an understanding of stress management for housewife. It is very important because there is still many people don't know about it. If people's knowledge is good so people can manage stress better. Health education was carried out in Kebun Dahri Urban Village, Bengkulu involving 29 housewife. It was provided with a leaflet as supporting media for education. Pre-test and post-test activity was carried out to evaluate knowledge before and after education. The results showed that there was an increase of knowledge about stress management among housewife after health education given. It wasn’t expected to increase knowledge only but also change behavior, so knowledge gained can be applied in everyday life.
Hormesis, priming, and allostasis, three fields related to stress tolerance and toxicity, have much to say about reactive oxygen species (ROS), oxidative stress, and antioxidants. Among them, hormesis is a phenomenon that received much attention in the last two decades, and is about how toxic substances and stressful conditions often have a biphasic dose-response curve, showing that these substances and conditions have a beneficial effect at low doses. Another field, priming studies, has also been popular lately. H2O2 priming studies show that H2O2, a ROS, confers cross-tolerance to plants when applied at low doses, a classic example of eustress, as argued here. Last of the three is allostasis. A concept arising from human and mammalian studies, it shows that the stress response of the organism is beneficial in the short term and damaging in the long term. The existence of allostasis in plants has not been explored so far. In this article, it is proposed that hormesis, eustress (and H2O2 priming as eustress), and allostasis are all connected via ROS and oxidative stress in plants. These connections are elaborated and a workable approach for antioxidant activity is presented, with allostasis complementing hormesis in the temporal dimension. This approach can be used to explain the observed antioxidant activity decrease under prolonged or heavy stress in some studies. Evidence for the debated existence of eustress is also presented, and it is argued as an example of allostasis.
Integrative medicine – what evidence is at hand for rheumatology?
The diverse procedures of traditional european medicine (TEM) look back on a long tradition in Germany and are characterized by
numerous application possibilities. Due to the growing evidence base, such treatments are increasingly being scientifically recognized and are successfully applied in integrative medical
concepts. The mostly chronic rheumatologic diseases offer many starting points for a holistic treatment and can complement conventional approaches with evidence-based TEM procedures.
In the therapy of rheumatoid arthritis, aerobic exercise training, cryotherapy and fasting therapies are particularly suitable to complement conventional approaches. Evidence for the use
of leeches is established for osteoarthritis. Current research on herbal remedies from TCM in Sjögren‘s syndrome and local cannabinoid application in systemic sclerosis seem promising.
Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus may benefit from moderate exercise therapy and a plant-based diet. For the treatment of patients with fibromyalgia syndrome, the complementary
use of mind-body medicine and Tai Chi and Ayurveda may be an option. Due to the high demand of patients a professional consultation by well-informed rheumatologists is required.
Further basic and clinical research together with effective research funding on TEM therapies in rheumatology is needed.
Animals, like humans, suffer and die from natural causes. This is particularly true of animals living in the wild, given their high exposure to, and low capacity to cope with, harmful natural processes. Most wild animals likely have short lives, full of suffering, usually ending in terrible deaths. This book argues that on the assumption that we have reasons to assist others in need, we should intervene in nature to prevent or reduce the harms wild animals suffer, provided that it is feasible and that the expected result is positive overall. It is of the utmost importance that academics from different disciplines as well as animal advocates begin to confront this issue. The more people are concerned with wild animal suffering, the more probable it is that safe and effective solutions to the plight of wild animals will be implemented in the future.
The main glucocorticoids involved in the stress response are cortisol and cortisone in most mammals and corticosterone in birds and rodents. Therefore, these analytes are currently the biomarkers more frequently used to evaluate the physiological response to a stressful situation. In addition, “total glucocorticoids”, which refers to the quantification of various glucocorticoids by immunoassays showing cross-reactivity with different types of glucocorticoids or related metabolites, can be measured. In this review, we describe the characteristics of the main glucocorticoids used to assess stress, as well as the main techniques and samples used for their quantification. In addition, we analyse the studies where at least two of the main glucocorticoids were measured in combination. Overall, this review points out the different behaviours of the main glucocorticoids, depending on the animal species and stressful stimuli, and shows the potential advantages that the measurement of at least two different glucocorticoid types can have for evaluating welfare.
Increasingly more research is showing that stress has an influence on the development and maintenance of externalizing problem behavior in adolescents. Stress, for example, causes more impulsivity and limits emotion regulation. Mindfulness focuses on stress reduction and therefore appears to be a (supportive) treatment option with added value for adolescents with externalizing problem behavior. A multilevel meta-analysis (14 studies and 48 effect sizes) was conducted to gain more insight into the effectiveness of this treatment form in reducing externalizing problem behavior. It specifically considered whether the involvement of parents or other combined forms of treatment influenced the effect. The results showed that mindfulness-based interventions are effective in reducing externalizing problem behavior in adolescents, with a large effect size (d = 0.99). The effect was found to be even greater (d = 1.14) after correction for selection bias. The moderator analysis revealed that none of the variables examined had an impact on the effect of mindfulness-based interventions. The results of the moderator analysis should be interpreted with caution. Due to the fact that parents were not involved intensely enough, were barely motivated, and no follow-up data are known about the effectiveness.
Background: Oral lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory condition that only involves in the oral cavity and is mediated by the cellular immune system. The etiology of OLP is unclear but autoreactive T lymphocytes are considered to play an important role in the development of OLP. Factors like stress and psychological anxiety have been associated with OLP but their roles in the development of OLP is yet explored. Purpose: To describe stress-induced OLP immunopathogenesis and therapeutic potential. Reviews: In the early stages, the mechanism of OLP involves the expression of keratinocyte antigens or exposure to an antigen in the form of self-peptide or heat shock protein (HSP). HSP90 is the most expressed heat shock protein in the basal layer of keratinocytes and plays a role in recruitment of cellular immune cells through the production of cytokines due to TLR2/4 and CD91 activation, inflammatory cell migration due to 4 integrin activation, and increased antigen presentation due to HSP90-peptide binding to MHC class I/II. Stress as a physiological response triggers the release of the hormone cortisol from the adrenal cortex and catecholamine hormones such as epinephrine/ adrenaline and norepinephrine/noradrenaline from the adrenal medulla. Catecholamines increase the migration of T lymphocyte cells through the interaction of integrins and integrin ligands on the endothelium through the expression of 2-integrin after binding to adrenergic receptors on the cell membrane. Conclusion: Oral lichen planus is a chronic inflammatory condition caused by various factors where stress increases the migration of T lymphocyte cells on the side that expresses self-peptides and antigens through the interaction of immune cells with catecholamines. Topical nonselective beta blockers can be supporting therapy in reducing pain and size of OLP lesions.
The
addition of antioxidants, whose effects on fertility in mammals have been
investigated, to culture media in in vitro embryo production systems as well as
parenteral and oral use has come to the fore and studies on this subject have
increased. We believe that this book will make important contributions to scientists
and students who are interested in the subject today, where antioxidants are
gaining importance.
Work is fundamental to an individual's mental health; however, an unfavourable work environment can lead to mental health problems. Despite existing studies addressing workers' mental health, it is essential to understand the reality of specific contexts to design effective tailored interventions. Thus, this study aimed to examine the influence of potential protective and vulnerability factors on municipal workers' depressive symptoms, anxiety and stress levels, and burnout. A cross-sectional study was conducted with data collection performed between July and December 2021 using online self-report measures. The sample comprised 115 municipal workers. The findings revealed that psychological vulnerability is a significant vulnerability factor for the presence of mental health symptoms. In addition, job satisfaction was found to be a significant protective factor for depressive symptoms, anxiety, and burnout of the municipal workers. The results of this study enhance the understanding of factors that influence worker mental health, which may facilitate the proper planning of specific interventions to promote mental health in the workplace.
Objectives
The Avoidance-Endurance Model distinguishes between subgroups of low back pain (LBP) patients with three maladaptive styles of coping with pain: fear-avoidance (FAR), distress-endurance (DER), eustress-endurance (EER), and one adaptive coping style (AR). This study aimed to compare the quantity of patients' perceived psychosocial stressors and coping resources across these subgroups.
Materials and methods
This cross-sectional study was conducted at an outpatient rehabilitation center for patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. One hundred and thirty-seven patients (69 women/68 men) with chronic LBP were assessed using the following: a demographic checklist, the visual analogue scale, Avoidance-Endurance Questionnaire, Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire, Pain Disability Index, and 36-Item Short Form. Subsequently, patients participated in semi-structured interviews led by clinical psychologists, which were intended to identify their perception of stressors and coping resources. The quantity of psychosocial stressors and coping resources were analyzed using deductive and inductive content analyses and then compared between subgroups using chi-square-tests.
Results
FARs experienced significantly higher levels of “mental suffering” ( p = <0.001) and “other workplace problems” compared to ARs and EERs ( p = <0.001). DERs reported significantly higher levels of “mental suffering” ( p = <0.001), “job stress” ( p = 0.022), and “familial losses” ( p = 0.029) compared to ARs, whereas the AR group demonstrated significantly more “coping resources” ( p = 0.001) compared to FARs.
Conclusion
AEM-subgroups differed in the quantity of perceived psychosocial stressors and coping resources with AR, who demonstrated a lower risk for pain chronicity and reported the highest quantity of resources. The variability across subgroups may imply differences in patientś needs regarding therapeutic interventions and suggests that a resource-centered approach to cope with stress and pain may be beneficial.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to highlight and demonstrate how the study of stress and related responses in construction can best be measured and benchmarked effectively.
Design/methodology/approach
A range of perceptual and physiological measures are obtained across different time periods and during different activities in a fieldwork setting. Differences in the empirical results are analysed and implications for future studies of stress discussed.
Findings
The results of this study strongly support the use of multiple psychometrics and biosensors whenever biometrics are included in the study of stress. Perceptual, physiological and environmental factors are all shown to act in concert to impact stress. Strong conclusions on the potential drivers of stress should then only be considered when consistent results apply across multiple metrics, time periods and activities.
Research limitations/implications
Stress is an incredibly complex condition. This study demonstrates why many current applications of biosensors to study stress in construction are not up to the task and provides empirical evidence on how future studies can be significantly improved.
Originality/value
To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to focus explicitly on demonstrating the need for multiple research instruments and settings when studying stress or related conditions in construction.
In commenting in considerable detail on the four main articles in the special section on stress and coping, the author comes to two main conclusions: First, there is an increasing amount of high quality research on stress and coping that suggests the field is finally maturing, and this research may help reduce the long-standing gap between research and clinical practice. Second, this research is increasingly using badly needed research designs that have not hitherto been sufficiently emphasized, such as longitudinal or prospective designs, focused on observations that are day-to-day, microanalytic, and in-depth, and that are compatible with a holistic outlook. The author also addresses the role of positive emotion in coping, the concept of defense as it is dealt with nowadays, and the task of evaluating coping efficacy.
Background:
Chronic psychological stress is associated with accelerated aging and increased risk for aging-related diseases, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are unclear.
Results:
We examined the effect of lifetime stressors on a DNA methylation-based age predictor, epigenetic clock. After controlling for blood cell-type composition and lifestyle parameters, cumulative lifetime stress, but not childhood maltreatment or current stress alone, predicted accelerated epigenetic aging in an urban, African American cohort (n = 392). This effect was primarily driven by personal life stressors, was more pronounced with advancing age, and was blunted in individuals with higher childhood abuse exposure. Hypothesizing that these epigenetic effects could be mediated by glucocorticoid signaling, we found that a high number (n = 85) of epigenetic clock CpG sites were located within glucocorticoid response elements. We further examined the functional effects of glucocorticoids on epigenetic clock CpGs in an independent sample with genome-wide DNA methylation (n = 124) and gene expression data (n = 297) before and after exposure to the glucocorticoid receptor agonist dexamethasone. Dexamethasone induced dynamic changes in methylation in 31.2 % (110/353) of these CpGs and transcription in 81.7 % (139/170) of genes neighboring epigenetic clock CpGs. Disease enrichment analysis of these dexamethasone-regulated genes showed enriched association for aging-related diseases, including coronary artery disease, arteriosclerosis, and leukemias.
Conclusions:
Cumulative lifetime stress may accelerate epigenetic aging, an effect that could be driven by glucocorticoid-induced epigenetic changes. These findings contribute to our understanding of mechanisms linking chronic stress with accelerated aging and heightened disease risk.
Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is a major regulator of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Binding to its receptor CRHR1 triggers the downstream release of the stress response-regulating hormone cortisol. Biochemical, behavioral and genetic studies revealed CRHR1 as a possible candidate gene for mood and anxiety disorders. Here we aimed to evaluate CRHR1 as a risk factor for panic disorder (PD). Allelic variation of CRHR1 was captured by 9 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), which were genotyped in 531 matched case/control pairs. Four SNPs were found to be associated with PD, in at least one sub-sample. The minor allele of rs17689918 was found to significantly increase risk for PD in females after Bonferroni correction and furthermore decreased CRHR1 mRNA expression in human forebrains and amygdalae. When investigating neural correlates underlying this association in patients with PD using functional magnetic resonance imaging, risk allele carriers of rs17689918 showed aberrant differential conditioning predominantly in the bilateral prefrontal cortex and safety signal processing in the amygdalae, arguing for predominant generalization of fear and hence anxious apprehension. Additionally, the risk allele of rs17689918 led to less flight behavior during fear-provoking situations but rather increased anxious apprehension and went along with increased anxiety sensitivity. Thus reduced gene expression driven by CRHR1 risk allele leads to a phenotype characterized by fear sensitization and hence sustained fear. These results strengthen the role of CRHR1 in PD and clarify the mechanisms by which genetic variation in CRHR1 is linked to this disorder.Molecular Psychiatry advance online publication, 1 September 2015; doi:10.1038/mp.2015.125.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine disorder that affects up to 6.8% of reproductive age women. Experimental research and clinical observations suggest that PCOS may originate in the very early stages of development, possibly even during intrauterine life. This suggests that PCOS is either genetically-transmitted or is due to epigenetic alterations that develop in the intrauterine microenvironment. Although familial cases support the role of genetic factors, no specific genetic pattern has been defined in PCOS. Several candidate genes have been implicated in its pathogenesis, but none can specifically be implicated in PCOS development. Hypotheses based on the impact of the intrauterine environment on PCOS development can be grouped into two categories. The first is the "thrifty" phenotype hypothesis, which states that intrauterine nutritional restriction in fetuses causes decreased insulin secretion and, as a compensatory mechanism, insulin resistance. Additionally, an impaired nutritional environment can affect the methylation of some specific genes, which can also trigger PCOS. The second hypothesis postulates that fetal exposure to excess androgen can induce changes in differentiating tissues, causing the PCOS phenotype to develop in adult life. This review aimed to examine the role of fetal programming in development of PCOS.
Geoffrey Harris, while still a medical student at Cambridge, was the first (1937) to provide experimental proof for the then tentative view that the anterior pituitary gland was controlled by the central nervous system. The elegant studies carried out by Harris in the 1940s and early 1950s, alone and in collaboration with John Green and Dora Jacobsohn, established that this control was mediated by a neurohumoral mechanism involving the transport by hypophysial portal vessel blood of chemical substances from the hypothalamus to the anterior pituitary gland. The neurohumoral control of anterior pituitary secretion was proved by the isolation and characterization of the "chemical substances" (mainly neuropeptides) and the finding that they were released into hypophysial portal blood in a manner consistent with their physiological functions. The new discipline of neuroendocrinology - the way that the brain controls endocrine glands and vice versa - revolutionized the treatment of endocrine disorders such as growth and pubertal abnormalities, infertility and hormone dependent tumours, and underpins our understanding of sexual differentiation of the brain and key aspects of behaviour and mental disorder. Neuroendocrine principles will be illustrated here by way of Harris' major interest, hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal control. Attention will focus on the measurement of gonadotrophin releasing hormone (GnRH) in hypophysial portal blood and the role played by the self-priming effect of GnRH in promoting the onset of puberty and enabling the oestrogen-induced surge or pulses of GnRH to trigger the ovulatory gonadotrophin surge in the human and other spontaneously ovulating mammals.
The molecular signatures of epigenetic regulation and chromatin architectures are fundamental to genetically determined biological processes. Covalent and post-translational chemical modification of the chromatin template can sensitize the genome to changing environmental conditions to establish diverse functional states. Recent interest and research focus surrounds the direct connections between metabolism and chromatin dynamics, which now represents an important conceptual challenge to explain many aspects of metabolic dysfunction. Several components of the epigenetic machinery require intermediates of cellular metabolism for enzymatic function. Furthermore, changes to intracellular metabolism can alter the expression of specific histone methyltransferases and acetyltransferases conferring widespread variations in epigenetic modification patterns. Specific epigenetic influences of dietary glucose and lipid consumption, as well as undernutrition, are observed across numerous organs and pathways associated with metabolism. Studies have started to define the chromatin-dependent mechanisms underlying persistent and pathophysiological changes induced by altered metabolism. Importantly, numerous recent studies demonstrate that gene regulation underlying phenotypic determinants of adult metabolic health is influenced by maternal and early postnatal diet. These emerging concepts open new perspectives to combat the rising global epidemic of metabolic disorders.
© 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.
Emotionally arousing events are recalled better than neutral events. This phenomenon, which helps us to remember important and potentially vital information, depends on the activation of noradrenergic transmission in the brain. Here we show that a deletion variant of
homeostasis versus allostasis
mechanisms of allostasis
allostatic regulation of the immune response
regulation of arousal
pathology from chronic arousal
definitions of health and approaches to therapeutics
hypertension / psychoneuriommunology / iatrogenesis / health (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Recent studies have examined gene×environment (G×E) interactions involving the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene in moderating the associations between exposure to adversity and antisocial behaviour. The present study examined a novel method for assessing interactions between a single gene and multiple risk factors related to environmental and personal adversity.
To test the hypothesis that the presence of the low-activity MAOA genotype was associated with an increased response to a series of risk factors.
Participants were 399 males from the Christchurch Health and Development Study who had complete data on: (a) MAOA promoter region variable number tandem repeat genotype; (b) antisocial behaviour (criminal offending) to age 30 and convictions to age 21; and (c) maternal smoking during pregnancy, IQ, childhood maltreatment and school failure.
Poisson regression models were fitted to three antisocial behaviour outcomes (property/violent offending ages 15-30; and convictions ages 17-21), using measures of exposure to adverse childhood circumstances. The analyses revealed consistent evidence of G x E interactions, such that those with the low-activity MAOA variant who were exposed to adversity in childhood were significantly more likely to report offending in late adolescence and early adulthood.
The present findings add to the evidence suggesting that there is a stable G x E interaction involving MAOA, a range of adverse environmental and personal factors, and antisocial behaviour across the life course. These analyses also demonstrate the utility of using multiple environmental/personal exposures to test G×E interactions.
The pioneering discovery of the heat shock response by the Italian scientist Ferruccio Ritossa reached maturity this year, 2012. It was 50 years ago that Professor Ritossa, through an extraordinary combination of serendipity, curiosity, knowledge and inspiration, published the first observation that cells could mount very strong transcriptional activity when exposed to elevated temperatures, which was coined the heat shock response. This discovery led to the identification of heat shock proteins, which impact many areas of current biology and medicine, and has created a new avenue for more exciting discoveries. In recognition of the discovery of the heat shock response, Cell Stress Society International (CSSI) awarded Professor Ritossa with the CSSI medallion in October 2010 in Dozza, Italy. This article is based on a session of the Fifth CSSI Congress held in Québec commemorating Professor Ritossa and his discovery.
Stress in mammals triggers a neuroendocrine response mediated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the autonomic nervous system. Increased activity of these two systems induces behavioural, cardiovascular, endocrine and metabolic cascades that enable the individual to fight or flee and cope with the stress. Our understanding of stress and stress-response mechanisms is generally robust. Here, however, we review three themes that remain controversial and perhaps deserve further scrutiny and investigation before they achieve canonical status. The themes are, first, hypocortisolaemia in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A reduction rather than a stress-induced increase in adrenal glucocorticoid levels, as seen in major depressive disorder (MDD), is puzzling and furthermore is not a consistent feature of PTSD. Overall, studies on PTSD show that glucocorticoid levels may be normal or higher or lower than normal. The second theme concerns the reduction in volume of the hippocampus in MDD attributed to the neurotoxicity of hypercortisolaemia. Again, as for hypocortisolaemia in PTSD, reduced hippocampal volume in MDD has been found in some but not all studies. Third, the discovery of a causal association between Helicobacter pylori and peptic ulcers apparently brought to an end the long-held view that peptic ulceration was caused predominantly by stress. However, recent studies suggest that stress can cause peptic ulceration in the absence of H. pylori. Predictably, the aetiological pendulum of gastric and duodenal ulceration has swung from 'all stress' to 'all bacteria' followed by a sober realisation that both factors may play a role. This raises the question as to whether stress and H. pylori interact, and if so how? All three controversies are of clinical significance, pose fundamental questions about stress mechanisms and offer important areas for future research.
Probing gene-environment interactions that affect neural processing is crucial for understanding individual differences in behavior and disease vulnerability. Here, we tested whether the current environmental context, which affects the acute brain state, modulates genotype effects on brain function in humans. We manipulated the context by inducing acute psychological stress, which increases noradrenergic activity, and probed its effect on tonic activity and phasic responses in the amygdala using two MRI techniques: conventional blood oxygen level-dependent functional MRI and arterial spin labeling. We showed that only carriers of a common functional deletion in ADRA2B, the gene coding for the alpha2b-adrenoreceptor, displayed increased phasic amygdala responses under stress. Tonic activity, reflecting the perfusion of the amygdala, increased independently of genotype after stress induction. Thus, when tonic activity was heightened by stress, only deletion carriers showed increased amygdala responses. Our results demonstrate that genetic effects on brain operations can be state dependent, such that they only become apparent under specific, often environmentally controlled, conditions.
JAMA
Interaction Between the Serotonin Transporter Gene (5-HTTLPR), Stressful Life Events, and Risk of Depression: A Meta-analysis
Neil Risch, PhD; Richard Herrell, PhD; Thomas Lehner, PhD; Kung-Yee Liang, PhD; Lindon Eaves, PhD; Josephine Hoh, PhD; Andrea Griem, BS; Marika Kovacs, PhD; Jurg Ott, PhD; Kathleen Ries Merikangas, PhD
Context:
Substantial resources are being devoted to identify candidate genes for complex mental and behavioral disorders through inclusion of environmental exposures following the report of an interaction between the serotonin transporter linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) and stressful life events on an increased risk of major depression.
Objective:
To conduct a meta-analysis of the interaction between the serotonin transporter gene and stressful life events on depression using both published data and individual-level original data.
Data Sources:
Search of PubMed, EMBASE, and PsycINFO databases through March 2009 yielded 26 studies of which 14 met criteria for the meta-analysis.
Study Selection:
Criteria for studies for the meta-analyses included published data on the association between 5-HTTLPR genotype (SS, SL, or LL), number of stressful life events (0, 1, 2, 3) or equivalent, and a categorical measure of depression defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Fourth Edition) or the International Statistical Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) or use of a cut point to define depression from standardized rating scales. To maximize our ability to use a common framework for variable definition, we also requested original data from all studies published prior to 2008 that met inclusion criteria. Of the 14 studies included in the meta-analysis, 10 were also included in a second sex-specific meta-analysis of original individual-level data.
Data Extraction:
Logistic regression was used to estimate the effects of the number of short alleles at 5-HTTLPR, the number of stressful life events, and their interaction on depression. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated separately for each study and then weighted averages of the individual estimates were obtained using random-effects meta-analysis. Both sex-combined and sex-specific meta-analyses were conducted. Of a total of 14 250 participants, 1769 were classified as having depression; 12 481 as not having depression.
Results:
In the meta-analysis of published data, the number of stressful life events was significantly associated with depression (OR, 1.41; 95% CI,1.25-1.57). No association was found between 5-HTTLPR genotype and depression in any of the individual studies nor in the weighted average (OR, 1.05; 95% CI, 0.98-1.13) and no interaction effect between genotype and stressful life events on depression was observed (OR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.94-1.10). Comparable results were found in the sex-specific meta-analysis of individual-level data.
Conclusion:
This meta-analysis yielded no evidence that the serotonin transporter genotype alone or in interaction with stressful life events is associated with an elevated risk of depression in men alone, women alone, or in both sexes combined.
JAMA. 2009;301(23):2462-2471..
Emotionally arousing events are typically well remembered, but there is a large interindividual variability for this phenomenon. We have recently shown that a functional deletion variant of ADRA2B, the gene encoding the alpha2b-adrenergic receptor, is related to enhanced emotional memory in healthy humans and enhanced traumatic memory in war victims. Here, we investigated the neural mechanisms of this effect in healthy participants by using fMRI. Carriers of the ADRA2B deletion variant exhibited increased activation of the amygdala during encoding of photographs with negative emotional valence compared with noncarriers of the deletion. Additionally, functional connectivity between amygdala and insula was significantly stronger in deletion carriers. The present findings indicate that the ADRA2B deletion variant is related to increased responsivity and connectivity of brain regions implicated in emotional memory.
Twin data permit decomposition of comorbidity into genetically and environmentally derived correlations. No previous twin study includes all major forms of anxiety disorder.
To estimate the degree to which genetic and environmental risk factors are shared rather than unique to dimensionally scored panic disorder, generalised anxiety disorder, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Data obtained from 2801 young-adult Norwegian twins by means of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview were analysed with the Mx program.
A multivariate common factor model fitted best. The latent liability to all anxiety disorders was substantially more heritable (54%) than the individual disorders (23% to 40%). Most of the genetic effect was common to the disorders. Genes contributed just over 50% to the covariance between liabilities.
The five anxiety disorders all share genetic and environmental risk factors. This has implications for the revision of the anxiety disorder section in DSM-V.
While there is widespread interest in and admiration of individuals with exceptional talents, surprisingly little is known about the cognitive and neural mechanisms underpinning talent, and indeed how talent relates to expertise. Because many talents are first identified and nurtured in childhood, it can be difficult to determine whether talent is innate, can be acquired through extensive practice or can only be acquired in the presence of the developing brain. We sought to address some of these issues by studying healthy adults who acquired expertise in adulthood. We focused on the domain of memory and used licensed London taxi drivers as a model system. Taxi drivers have to learn the layout of 25,000 streets in London and the locations of thousands of places of interest, and pass stringent examinations in order to obtain an operating licence. Using neuropsychological assessment and structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging, we addressed a range of key questions: in the context of a fully developed brain and an average IQ, can people acquire expertise to an exceptional level; what are the neural signatures, both structural and functional, associated with the use of expertise; does expertise change the brain compared with unskilled control participants; does it confer any cognitive advantages, and similarly, does it come at a cost to other functions? By studying retired taxi drivers, we also consider what happens to their brains and behaviour when experts stop using their skill. Finally, we discuss how the expertise of taxi drivers might relate to the issue of talent and innate abilities. We suggest that exploring talent and expertise in this manner could have implications for education, rehabilitation of patients with cognitive impairments, understanding individual differences and possibly conditions such as autism where exceptional abilities can be a feature.
The fetal origins hypothesis states that fetal undernutrition in middle to late gestation, which leads to disproportionate fetal growth, programmes later coronary heart disease. Animal studies have shown that undernutrition before birth programmes persisting changes in a range of metabolic, physiological, and structural parameters. Studies in humans have shown that men and women whose birth weights were at the lower end of the normal range, who were thin or short at birth, or who were small. in relation to placental size have increased rates of coronary heart disease. We are beginning to understand something of the mechanisms underlying these associations. The programming of blood pressure, insulin responses to glucose, cholesterol metabolism, blood coagulation, and hormonal settings are all areas of active research.
Neurogenesis and neuronal replacement in a population of wild free-ranging animals are described. Our subjects were adult black-capped chickadees (Parus atricapillus). Neuronal birth dates were determined by a single systemic injection of [3H]thymidine, followed by release of the bird and its recapture 6 or more weeks later. Newly formed neurons appeared in the hippocampal complex during all times of year, but with a marked peak in the fall (October). New neurons were also added to the hippocampal complex of captive chickadees, but at levels only half as high as seen in the wild birds. Neurons born at different times of the year lived for a few months and then disappeared. We suggest that the neurons added are part of a process of neuronal replacement and that they are important for the acquisition of new spatial memories, a need that is particularly acute in the fall. Hormonal and experiential factors may determine the rate of neuronal replacement.
In contrast to homeostasis, allostasis refers to the relatively new idea of "viability through change." This book addresses basic physiological regulatory systems, and examines bodily regulation under duress. It integrates the basic concepts of physiological homeostasis with disorders such as depression, stress, anxiety and addiction. It will interest graduate students, medical students, and researchers in physiology, epidemiology, endocrinology, neuroendocrinology, neuroscience, and psychology.
This book is the first to address the most urgent issues, combining a solid basic research approach with applied individual and stress issues, including interventions. Throughout, the focus is on our latest knowledge about various causes of stress and its neuro-cognitive and biological implications. World-renowned authors from Europe as well as the US describe how stress affects the brain of young people as well as adults. They cover the topic from all perspectives, showing how stress affects life in general, from the societal and organizational level to the individual, organ and molecular level. While the book clearly points out stress as a risk factor to health, it also offers a number of evidence-based methods to cope with stress and even ride the positive energy of stress - both as an individual, as well as what managers can do to create a healthy and productive workplace. Written in a reader-friendly and appealing style, the book provides real-life examples from various laboratories, as well as such events as the Volvo Ocean Race, the largest around-the-globe sailing competition. Essential reading for clinicians and biologists, as well as for a wide range of students, including medicine and public health, but also managers and HR staff. With a Foreword by Nobel Laureate Professor Arvid Carlsson (Medicine 2000).
This chapter focuses on the principles of negative feedback control using the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) system as an example. Feedback control systems are fundamental for the normal physiological functioning of the body. Glucocorticoid feedback inhibition of ACTH release protects the organism against the deleterious effects of hypercortisolemia. The HPA system, together with the sympathetic-medullary system, plays a pivotal role in the neuroendocrine response to stress. Thyroid negative feedback control is more complex than originally thought. It seems that most of thyroid negative feedback is actioned by an effect on TRH at the level of the paraventricular nucleus. There are several types of inherited enzymatic defects in cortisol synthesis known to result in congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH), also known as the adrenogenital syndrome. Disruption of the HPA negative feedback system has serious deleterious effects, a point illustrated by the congenital adrenogenital syndrome and hypercortisolemia associated with serious mental illnesses.
Background: Chronic psychological stress is associated with accelerated aging and increased risk for aging-related diseases, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are unclear. Results: We examined the effect of lifetime stressors on a DNA methylation-based age predictor, epigenetic clock. After controlling for blood cell-type composition and lifestyle parameters, cumulative lifetime stress, but not childhood maltreatment or current stress alone, predicted accelerated epigenetic aging in an urban, African American cohort (n = 392). This effect was primarily driven by personal life stressors, was more pronounced with advancing age, and was blunted in individuals with higher childhood abuse exposure. Hypothesizing that these epigenetic effects could be mediated by glucocorticoid signaling, we found that a high number (n = 85) of epigenetic clock CpG sites were located within glucocorticoid response elements. We further examined the functional effects of glucocorticoids on epigenetic clock CpGs in an independent sample with genome-wide DNA methylation (n = 124) and gene expression data (n = 297) before and after exposure to the glucocorticoid receptor agonist dexamethasone. Dexamethasone induced dynamic changes in methylation in 31.2 % (110/353) of these CpGs and transcription in 81.7 % (139/170) of genes neighboring epigenetic clock CpGs. Disease enrichment analysis of these dexamethasone-regulated genes showed enriched association for aging-related diseases, including coronary artery disease, arteriosclerosis, and leukemias.
This chapter focuses on the principles of neural control of the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland. Derived embryologically from a neural downgrowth, the neural lobe is composed of axons that project from nerve cells in the hypothalamus and terminate on capillaries of the inferior hypophysial artery. Neurohemal junctions are the fundamental functional modules of the major central neuroendocrine system, the median eminence. They are composed of nerve terminals and capillaries that are closely juxtaposed and thereby facilitate the release of chemical messengers from nerve terminals into the bloodstream and vice versa. The neurohemal junctions in the median eminence, neurohypophysis and pineal gland facilitate the transport of neurohormones from the nerve terminals or nerve cell derivatives (pineal) into the bloodstream, whereas at the other CVOs, neurohemal junctions facilitate the sensing of blood hormones by nerve cells. Most of the neurohormones that mediate the neural control of anterior pituitary hormone secretion are peptides that are synthesized in discrete hypothalamic nuclei.
It has long been understood that the pathogenesis of complex diseases such as diabetes includes both genetic and environmental components. More recently, it has become clear that not only does an individual's environment influence their own metabolism, but in some cases, the environment experienced by their parents may also contribute to their risk of metabolic disease. Here, we review the evidence that parental diet influences metabolic phenotype in offspring in mammals and provide a current survey of our mechanistic understanding of these effects.
Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Background
Following wider acceptance of “the thrifty phenotype” hypothesis and the convincing evidence that early life exposures can influence adult health even decades after the exposure, much interest has been placed on the mechanisms through which early life exposures become biologically embedded.Methods
In this review, we summarize the current literature regarding biological embedding of early life experiences. To this end we conducted a literature search to identify studies investigating early life exposures in relation to DNA methylation changes. In addition, we summarize the challenges faced in investigations of epigenetic effects, stemming from the peculiarities of this emergent and complex field. A proper systematic review and meta-analyses were not feasible given the nature of the evidence.ResultsWe identified 7 studies on early life socioeconomic circumstances, 10 studies on childhood obesity, and 6 studies on early life nutrition all relating to DNA methylation changes that met the stipulated inclusion criteria. The pool of evidence gathered, albeit small, favours a role of epigenetics and DNA methylation in biological embedding, but replication of findings, multiple comparison corrections, publication bias, and causality are concerns remaining to be addressed in future investigations.Conclusions
Based on these results, we hypothesize that epigenetics, in particular DNA methylation, is a plausible mechanism through which early life exposures are biologically embedded. This review describes the current status of the field and acts as a stepping stone for future, better designed investigations on how early life exposures might become biologically embedded through epigenetic effects.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
A peptide with high potency and intrinsic activity for stimulating the
secretion of corticotropin-like and β -endorphin-like
immunoactivities by cultured anterior pituitary cells has been purified
from ovine hypothalamic extracts. The primary structure of this
41-residue corticotropin- and β -endorphin-releasing factor has
been determined to be:
H-Ser-Gln-Glu-Pro-Pro-Ile-Ser-Leu-Asp-Leu-Thr-Phe-His-Leu-Leu-Arg-Glu-
Val-Leu-Glu-Met-Thr-Lys-Ala-Asp-Gln-Leu-Ala-Gln-Gln-Ala-His-Ser-Asn-Arg-
Lys-Leu-Leu-Asp-Ile-Ala-NH2 The synthetic peptide is active
in vitro and in vivo.
The brain is the central organ of the body's response to and perception of stress. Both the juvenile and the adult brain show a significant capacity for lasting physiological, structural and behavioral plasticity as a consequence of stress exposure. The hypothesis that epigenetic mechanisms might lie behind the lasting effects of stress upon the brain has proven a fruitful one. In this review, we examine the growing literature showing that stress has a direct impact on epigenetic marks at all life history stages thus far examined and how, in turn, epigenetic mechanisms play a role in altering stress responsiveness, anxiety and brain plasticity across the lifespan and beyond to succeeding generations. In addition, we will examine our own recent findings that stress interacts with the epigenome to regulate the expression of transposable elements in a regionally specific fashion, a finding with significant implications for a portion of the genome which is tenfold larger than that occupied by the genes themselves.
The starting point for the study of adverse experiences is that some have enduring consequences that continue after the period of exposure to the adversity. That raises four basic issues: whether social adversities can be considered homogeneous, whether the crucial effect lies in the "objective" or subjectively perceived "effective" environment, whether the effects are environmentally mediated, and whether the form of biological embedding involves psychological or health consequences. The findings in the literature are discussed in relation to the biological effects of supposedly positive or normal experiences, the use of natural experiments to determine the causal effects of early experience, the heterogeneity of social adversity, the possible mediators of the biological embedding, gene-environment interdependence, and remaining challenges.
Si notato che shocks di temperatura possono indurre una variazione di puffing pattern in ghiandole salivari di Drosophila. Tali puffing sono perfettamente reversibili e rappresentano zone di intensa sintesi di RNA. Si notato che DNP e Na salicilato portano a simili variazioni di puffing pattern.
Major depressive disorder (MDD) and panic disorder (PD) are common and disabling medical disorders with stress and genetic components. Dysregulation of the stress response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, including the corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) signaling via primary receptors (CRHR1 and CRHR2), is considered to play a major role for onset and recurrence in MDD and PD. To confirm the association of CRHR1 and CRHR2 with MDD and PD, we investigated 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs4076452, rs7209436, rs110402, rs242924, rs242940, and rs173365 for CRHR1 and rs4722999, rs3779250, rs2267710, rs1076292, rs2284217, and rs226771 for CRHR2) in MDD patients (n = 173), PD patients (n = 180), and healthy controls (n = 285). The SNP rs110402 and rs242924 in the CRHR1 gene and the rs3779250 in the CRHR2 gene were associated with MDD. The SNP rs242924 in the CRHR1 gene was also associated with PD. The T-A-T-G-G haplotype consisting of rs7209436 and rs173365 in CRHR1 was positively associated with MDD. The T-A haplotype consisting of rs7209436 and rs110402 in CRHR1 was positively associated with MDD. The C-C haplotype consisting of rs4722999 and rs37790 in CRHR1 was associated with PD. These results provide support for an association of CRHR1 and CRHR2 with MDD and PD.
Risk factors for suicidal behaviors are partly heritable, including genetic variants that drive diathesis-stress in addition to, or by interaction with, exposure to certain stressful life events (SLEs). Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis regulatory genes are candidates for association with suicide as well as its endophenotypes. Using a family-based design of offspring who attempted suicide (SA) and both parents, we investigated gene-environment interactions (G×Es) of SLE exposures with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in corticotropin-releasing hormone receptor-1 (CRHR1), a major HPA axis regulatory gene. We observed a novel G×E among predominantly female SA between 5'-SNP rs7209436 and childhood/adolescence physical assault or attack (PA), as well as a second novel and male-specific G×E between 3'-SNP rs16940665 and adulthood PA exposure. A third male-specific G×E previously reported by us among depressed SA, between SNP rs4792887 and cumulative SLEs, was also further confirmed. The two novel G×Es presented here shared the SA characteristic of aggression, while showing differences on other aspects of SA heterogeneity. We conclude that different SA subjects were observed to differentially associate with two novel G×Es involving exposures to PA with different life timing and SNPs located in opposite ends of CRHR1. Concerning sex differences, we observed three subsets of distinct male SA that associated with each of the three observed G×Es, whereas female SAs were affected by only one of the G×Es. These results are consistent with a diathesis-stress model of suicidal behavior and may help to explain SA heterogeneity.
Recent meta-analyses have raised concerns about the replicability of gene × environment interactions involving the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) in moderating the associations between adverse life events and mental disorders.
To use data gathered over the course of a 30-year longitudinal study of a New Zealand birth cohort to test the hypothesis that the presence of short ('s') alleles of 5-HTTLPR are associated with an increased response to life stress.
Participants were 893 individuals from the Christchurch Health and Development Study who had complete data on: the 5-HTTLPR genotype; psychiatric disorders up to the age of 30; and exposure to childhood and adult adverse life events.
A series of 104 regression models were fitted to four mental health outcomes (depressive symptoms, major depression, anxiety disorder and suicidal ideation) observed at ages 18, 21, 25 and 30 using 13 measures of life-course stress that spanned childhood and adult stressors. Both multiplicative and additive models were fitted to the data. No evidence was found that would support the hypothesis that 's' alleles of 5-HTTLPR are associated with increased responsivity to life stressors.
The present findings add to the evidence suggesting that it is unlikely that there is a stable gene × environment interaction involving 5-HTTLPR, life stress and mental disorders.
The ultimate consequence of mental ill-health, suicidal behavior (SB), is a significant problem in most societies of the world. Suicide causes about one million deaths worldwide each year, and 10-20 times more people attempt suicide. The causes of why certain people engage in SB are complex, involving for e.g., both environmental and genetic factors, and interactions in-between. Well-established environmental risk factors are events causing significant psychological stress, which are particularly difficult to cope with, e.g. exposure to physical and sexual abuse. Excessive stress have the potential to induce unfavorable effects in a variety of higher brain-functions, incurred as side-effects to maladaptive responses in the genetically controlled stress-responsive neurosystems, e.g. the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis; a major and systemic stress-modulator, which is mainly controlled by the regulatory corticotrophin releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1) gene. Variation in-between individuals in such stress-regulatory genes such as CRHR1, may underlie the causes of the increased susceptibility of certain individuals towards SB. Here we review some of the current knowledge on what is known about the roles of the HPA axis in SB, with a focus on CRHR1.
Traité par Marc Augier (CERAM Business School) et Georges Vignaux (CNRS - Directeur du programme) dans le cadre des travaux du programme CoLiSciences (http ://colisciences.in2p3.fr) de la Maison des Sciences de l’Homme Paris Nord
Dysregulation in the stress response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, involving the corticotrophin-releasing hormone and its main receptor (CRHR1), is considered to play a major role in depression and suicidal behavior. To comprehensively map the genetic variation in CRHR1 in relation to suicidality and depression, as a follow-up to our initial report on SNP rs4792887, we analyzed six new single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in an extended sample of family trios (n = 672) with suicide attempter offspring, by using family-based association tests. The minor T-allele of exonic SNP rs12936511, not previously studied in the context of psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviors, was significantly transmitted to suicidal males with increased Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores (n = 347; P = 0.0028). We found additional evidence of association and linkage with increased BDI scores among suicidal males with an additional SNP, located proximally to the index SNP rs4792887, as well as with two distal SNPs, which were correlated with index SNP rs4792887. Analysis of haplotypes showed that each of the risk alleles segregated onto three separate haplotypes, whereas a fourth 'nonrisk' haplotype ('CGC') contained none of the risk alleles and was preferentially transmitted to suicidal males with lowered BDI scores (P = 0.0007). The BDI scores among all suicidal males, who carried a homozygous combination of any of the three risk haplotypes (non-CGC/non-CGC; n = 160), were significantly increased (P = 0.000089) compared with suicidal male CGC carriers (n = 181). Thus, while the characteristics of the suicide female attempters remained undetermined, the male suicidal offspring had increased depression intensity related to main genetic effects by exonic SNP rs12936511 and homozygous non-CGC haplotypes.
An attempt is made to further clarify present areas of controversy in the stress field, in response to a two-part article by Dr. John W. Mason which concludes in this issue of the Journal of Human Stress. The author tries to elucidate each source of confusion enumerated by Dr. Mason. The continued use of the word "stress" for the nonspecific response to any demand is deemed most desirable. The once vague term can now be applied in a well-defined sense and is accepted in all foreign languages as well, including those in which no such word existed previously in any sense. Subdivision of the stress concept has become necessary as more recent work has led to such notions as "eustress," "distress," "systemic stress" and "local stress." Confusion between stress as both an agent and a result can be avoided only by the distinction between "stress" and "stressor". It is explained that the stress syndrome is--by definition--nonspecific in its causation. However, depending upon conditioning factors, which can selectively influence the reactivity of certain organs, the same stressor can elicit different manifestations in different individuals.
1. The effects of adrenalectomy (3 weeks) and dexamethasone (3 h) treatment on the release of corticotrophin-releasing factor-41 (CRF-41), arginine vasopressin (AVP), oxytocin (OT), adrenocorticotrophin (ACTH) and corticosterone were studied in adult female Wistar rats. 2. The animals were anaesthetized with sodium pentobarbitone which, as assessed by the effects on the circadian rhythm of plasma ACTH and corticosterone, appeared to be a better anaesthetic than either urethane or alphaxalone for studies on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system. 3. Adrenalectomy increased the concentrations of ACTH in peripheral plasma and the output of CRF-41 and AVP into hypophysial portal plasma. 4. Dexamethasone administered to adrenalectomized rats significantly reduced the concentration of ACTH in peripheral plasma and the amount of AVP released into portal plasma. However, dexamethasone did not affect the output of CRF-41 into portal blood. 5. The output of OT into portal plasma was unaffected by either adrenalectomy or dexamethasone treatment. 6. Dexamethasone administered to adrenalectomized rats reduced significantly the ACTH response to CRF-41. 7. These results show that the feed-back action of glucocorticoids is mediated by two mechanisms. The increased release of ACTH which follows adrenolectomy [corrected] is produced predominantly by an increased release of both CRF-41 and AVP into hypophysial portal blood. The intermediate negative feed-back of glucocorticoids is produced by a reduction in the output of AVP but not CRF-41 into portal blood and, as well, by a significant reduction in the responsiveness of the anterior pituitary gland to CRF-41.
IN spite of the work on factors in brain tissue which seem to release pituitary hormone1, little has been done to determine whether these factors are present in hypophysial portal blood. Early work2 suggested that blood from the empty sella turcica of hypophysectomized dogs can stimulate the release of adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) and, more recently, it has been shown that there is luteinizing hormone releasing activity in hypophysial portal blood of rats3,4. We have now investigated whether hypophysial portal blood of rats contains a corticotrophin releasing factor (CRF).