Hair cortisol and its potential value as a physiological measure of stress response in human and non-human animals

2017 ◽  
Vol 57 (3) ◽  
pp. 401 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Burnard ◽  
C. Ralph ◽  
P. Hynd ◽  
J. Hocking Edwards ◽  
A. Tilbrook
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Sampling Site ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Hair Cortisol ◽  
Hair Sampling ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Lack Of Information ◽  
Technical Validation ◽  
Response To Stress

There is considerable interest in the potential for measuring cortisol in hair as a means of quantifying stress responses in human and non-human animals. This review updates the rapid advancement in our knowledge of hair cortisol, methods for its measurement, its relationship to acute and chronic stress, and its repeatability and heritability. The advantages of measuring cortisol in hair compared with other matrices such as blood, saliva and excreta and the current theories of the mechanisms of cortisol incorporation into the fibre are described. Hair cortisol as a measure of the physiological response to stress in a variety of species is presented, including correlations with other sample matrices, the relationship between hair cortisol and psychosocial stress and the repeatability and heritability of hair cortisol concentrations. Current standards for the quantification of hair cortisol are critically reviewed in detail for the first time and gaps in technical validation of these methods highlighted. The known effects of a variety of sources of hair cortisol variation are also reviewed, including hair sampling site, sex, age and adiposity. There is currently insufficient evidence to conclude that cortisol concentration in hair accurately reflects long-term blood cortisol concentrations. Similarly, there is a lack of information surrounding the mechanisms of cortisol incorporation into the hair. This review highlights several directions for future research to more fully validate the use of hair cortisol as an indicator of chronic stress.

scholarly journals EFFECT OF HORMONE-INDUCED STRESS ON CARP (CYPRINUS CARPIO) COAGULOGRAM

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (36) ◽  
pp. 346-356
Author(s):  
Daria I BEREZINA ◽  
Lyubov L FOMINA
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Cyprinus Carpio ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Hematological Parameters ◽  
The Body ◽  
Critical Conditions ◽  
Stress Reactions ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Induced Stress ◽  
Carp Cyprinus Carpio

Carp (Cyprinidae) is one of the dominating and most valuable fish species in fish farming. Under conditions of high-intensity cultivation, fish are systematically exposed to extreme factors that cause stress reactions, accompanied by changes in the functional state of the defense of the body systems and exert impact, primarily, on hematological parameters. The hemostatic system is one such defense systems, which counteracts bleeding through a coagulation mechanism. Hemocoagulation follows the same pattern in all vertebrates, from jawless fish to mammals, and represents an ancient adaptation of animals to stressful conditions, often associated with blood loss in nature. This research aimed to study the effect of hormone-induced stress on plasma (secondary) hemostasis in fish. Given the data fragmentation and differences in methodology and conditions, the lack of standardization in studying hemostasis in fish, especially in critical conditions, this problem remains not fully disclosed in global science. The article presents the results of studying carp (Cyprinus carpio) coagulogram parameters under the influence of acute and chronic stress responses, simulated by injections of synthetic cortisol analogs (dexamethasone for short-term stress, and betamethasone for chronic stress) during 21 days. The dynamics of these indicators were analyzed in comparison to intact fish. It has been established that by accelerating the activated partial thromboplastin time, prothrombin time, and increasing the amount of fibrinogen in the blood of fish, blood coagulation processes were clearly accelerated in all groups of animals tested by the last day of the experiment. The dynamics of other parameters, such as the content of soluble fibrin monomer complexes or antithrombin III content, indicated the simultaneous development of hypercoagulation processes in some groups. Assumptions have been made to explain the pattern of changes observed not only in treated fish but also in control animals.

scholarly journals Integrated Regulation of PKA by Fast and Slow Neurotransmission in the Nucleus Accumbens Controls Plasticity and Stress Responses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Thomas ◽  
Adan Hernandez ◽  
David R Benavides ◽  
Wei Li ◽  
Chunfeng Tan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Regulatory Subunit ◽  
Signaling Mechanism ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Dependent Protein ◽  
Response To Stress ◽  
Integrated Regulation ◽  
Midbrain Dopamine ◽  
Pka Regulatory Subunit ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Conditions

Cortical glutamate and midbrain dopamine neurotransmission converge to mediate striatum-dependent behaviors, while maladaptations in striatal circuitry contribute to mental disorders. Here we uncover a molecular mechanism by which glutamatergic and dopaminergic signaling integrate to regulate cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) via phosphorylation of the PKA regulatory subunit, RIIβ. We find that glutamate-dependent reduction in Cdk5-dependent RIIβ phosphorylation alters the PKA holoenzyme auto-inhibitory state to increase PKA signaling in response to dopamine. Disruption of RIIβ phosphorylation by Cdk5, consequently, enhances cortico-ventral striatal synaptic plasticity. Acute and chronic stress in rats inversely modulates RIIβ phosphorylation and ventral striatal infusion of a small interfering peptide that selectively targets RIIβ regulation by Cdk5 improves behavioral response to stress. This new signaling mechanism integrating ventral striatal glutamate and dopamine neurotransmission is likely important to brain function, may contribute to neuropsychiatric conditions, and serves as a possible target for the development of novel therapeutics for stress-related disorders.

scholarly journals Induction Of Chronic Stress Reveals An Interplay Of Stress Granules And TDP-43 Pathological Aggregates In Human ALS Fibroblasts And iPSC-Neurons

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia Ratti ◽  
Valentina Gumina ◽  
Paola Lenzi ◽  
Patrizia Bossolasco ◽  
Federica Fulceri ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Cell Response ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Protein Quality ◽  
Cell Model ◽  
Stress Granules ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Primary Fibroblasts ◽  
Response To Stress ◽  
Oxidative Insult

AbstractAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are fatal neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the presence of neuropathological aggregates of phosphorylated TDP-43 (P-TDP-43). The RNA-binding protein TDP-43 is also a component of stress granules (SG), cytoplasmic foci forming to arrest translation under sub-lethal stress conditions. Although commonly considered as distinct structures, a link between SG and pathological TDP-43 inclusions may occur despite evidence that TDP-43 pathology directly arises from SG is still under debate. Primary fibroblasts and iPSC-derived neurons (iPSC-N) from ALS patients carrying mutations in TARDBP (n=3) and C9ORF72 (n=3) genes and from healthy controls (n=3) were exposed to oxidative stress by sodium arsenite. SG formation and cell response to stress was evaluated and quantified by immunofluorescence and electron microscopy analyses. We found that, not only an acute, but also a chronic oxidative insult, better mimicking a persistent condition of stress as in neurodegeneration, is able to induce SG formation in primary fibroblasts and iPSC-N. Importantly, only upon chronic stress, we observed TDP-43 recruitment into SG and the formation of distinct P-TDP-43 aggregates, very similar to the abnormal inclusions observed in ALS/FTD autoptic brains. Moreover, in fibroblasts, cell response to stress was different in control compared with mutant ALS cells, probably due to their different vulnerability. A quantitative analysis revealed also differences in terms of number of SG-forming cells and SG size, suggesting a different composition of foci in acute and chronic stress. In condition of prolonged stress, SG and P-TDP-43 aggregate formation was concomitant with p62 increase and autophagy dysregulation in both ALS fibroblasts and iPSC-N, as confirmed by immunofluorescence and ultrastructural analyses. We found that exposure to a chronic oxidative insult promotes the formation of both SG and P-TDP-43 aggregates in patient-derived cells, reinforcing the idea that SG fail to properly disassemble, interfering with the protein quality control system. Moreover, we obtained a disease cell model recapitulating ALS/FTD P-TDP-43 aggregates, which represents an invaluable bioassay to study TDP-43 pathology and develop therapeutic strategies aimed at disaggregating or preventing the formation of pathological inclusions.

scholarly journals Physiological Stress in Rescued Wild Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) Being Held in a Rehabilitation Sanctuary: A Pilot Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renae Charalambous ◽  
Troy Simonato ◽  
Matthew Peel ◽  
Edward Narayan
Keyword(s):  
Stress Response ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Physiological Stress ◽  
Clinical Care ◽  
Stress System ◽  
Phascolarctos Cinereus ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress

Koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) are one of Australia's most charismatic native small marsupial species. Unfortunately, populations of koalas are rapidly declining throughout Australia and they continue to face increasing pressure from a changing ecosystem. Negative stimulants in the environment can elicit stress responses through activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Depending on the duration of the negative stimulant, the stress response can lead to either acute or chronic side effects, and is shown through the activation of the neuroendocrine stress system and the release of glucocorticoids (e.g., cortisol). Wild koalas entering clinical care face novel stressors that can be out of a wildlife carer's control. In this pilot study, we monitored physiological stress in three wild koalas at a wildlife rehabilitation centre in New South Wales, Australia. Acute and chronic stress was indexed non-invasively, with faecal samples taken to evaluate acute stress, and fur samples taken to evaluate chronic stress. Sampling occurred sporadically over four months, from the start of September 2018 to the end of December 2018. Results attempt to understand the stress response of koalas to negative stimulants in the environment by comparing faecal glucocorticoids on days where a known stressor was recorded with days where no known stressor was recorded. Furthermore, variations in faecal and fur glucocorticoids were compared between the three koalas in this study. To our knowledge, this is the first evidence of stress tracking of wild rescued koalas in a sanctuary. We suggest that further monitoring of baseline, acute and chronic stress will be needed to better understand how koalas respond to negative stimulants associated with clinical care.

scholarly journals Influences of Stress and Sex on the Paraventricular Thalamus: Implications for Motivated Behavior

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sydney A. Rowson ◽  
Kristen E. Pleil
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Reciprocal Relationship ◽  
Stress Exposure ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Motivated Behavior ◽  
Neuroendocrine Response ◽  
Response To Stress ◽  
Motivated Behaviors

The paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) is a critical neural hub for the regulation of a variety of motivated behaviors, integrating stress and reward information from environmental stimuli to guide discrete behaviors via several limbic projections. Neurons in the PVT are activated by acute and chronic stressors, however several roles of the PVT in behavior modulation emerge only following repeated stress exposure, pointing to a role for hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis modulation of PVT function. Further, there may be a reciprocal relationship between the PVT and HPA axis in which chronic stress-induced recruitment of the PVT elicits an additional role for the PVT to regulate motivated behavior by modulating HPA physiology and thus the neuroendocrine response to stress itself. This complex interaction may make the PVT and its role in influencing motivated behavior particularly susceptible to chronic stress-induced plasticity in the PVT, especially in females who display increased susceptibility to stress-induced maladaptive behaviors associated with neuropsychiatric diseases. Though literature is describing the sex-specific effects of acute and chronic stress exposure on HPA axis activation and motivated behaviors, the impact of sex on the role of the PVT in modulating the behavioral and neuroendocrine response to stress is less well established. Here, we review what is currently known regarding the acute and chronic stress-induced activation and behavioral role of the PVT in male and female rodents. We further explore stress hormone and neuropeptide signaling mechanisms by which the HPA axis and PVT interact and discuss the implications for sex-dependent effects of chronic stress on the PVT’s role in motivated behaviors.

Implication of the VGF-derived peptide TLQP-21 in mouse acute and chronic stress responses

2012 ◽  
Vol 229 (2) ◽  
pp. 333-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Razzoli ◽  
E. Bo ◽  
T. Pascucci ◽  
F. Pavone ◽  
F.R. D‘Amato ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress

scholarly journals Daily Limited Access to Sweetened Drink Attenuates Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenocortical Axis Stress Responses

Endocrinology ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 148 (4) ◽  
pp. 1823-1834 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yvonne M. Ulrich-Lai ◽  
Michelle M. Ostrander ◽  
Ingrid M. Thomas ◽  
Benjamin A. Packard ◽  
Amy R. Furay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mrna Expression ◽  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Restraint Stress ◽  
Basolateral Amygdala ◽  
Physiological Stress ◽  
Plasma Corticosterone ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Free Access ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress

Stress can promote palatable food intake, and consumption of palatable foods may dampen psychological and physiological responses to stress. Here we develop a rat model of daily limited sweetened drink intake to further examine the linkage between consumption of preferred foods and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis responses to acute and chronic stress. Adult male rats with free access to water were given additional twice-daily access to 4 ml sucrose (30%), saccharin (0.1%; a noncaloric sweetener), or water. After 14 d of training, rats readily learned to drink sucrose and saccharin solutions. Half the rats were then given chronic variable stress (CVS) for 14 d immediately after each drink exposure; the remaining rats (nonhandled controls) consumed their appropriate drinking solution at the same time. On the morning after CVS, responses to a novel restraint stress were assessed in all rats. Multiple indices of chronic stress adaptation were effectively altered by CVS. Sucrose consumption decreased the plasma corticosterone response to restraint stress in CVS rats and nonhandled controls; these reductions were less pronounced in rats drinking saccharin. Sucrose or saccharin consumption decreased CRH mRNA expression in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Moreover, sucrose attenuated restraint-induced c-fos mRNA expression in the basolateral amygdala, infralimbic cortex, and claustrum. These data suggest that limited consumption of sweetened drink attenuates hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis stress responses, and calories contribute but are not necessary for this effect. Collectively the results support the hypothesis that the intake of palatable substances represents an endogenous mechanism to dampen physiological stress responses.

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