Factors promoting vulnerability to dysregulated stress reactivity and stress-related disease

Author(s)

Russell, Ashley L. ; Tasker, Jeffrey G. ; Lucion, Aldo B. ; Fiedler, Jenny ; Munhoz, Carolina D. ; Wu, Tao-yiao John ; Deak, Terrence

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Journal of Neuroendocrinology; v. 30, n. 10, p. 13-pg., 2018-10-01.

Abstract

Effective coordination of the biological stress response is integral for the behavioural well-being of an organism. Stress reactivity is coordinated by an interplay of the neuroendocrine system and the sympathetic nervous system. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis plays a key role in orchestrating the bodily responses to stress, and the activity of the axis can be modified by a wide range of experiential events. This review focuses on several factors that influence subsequent HPA axis reactivity. Some of these factors include early-life adversity, exposure to chronic stress, immune activation and traumatic brain injury. The central premise is that each of these experiences serves as a general vulnerability factor that accelerates future HPA axis reactivity in ways that make individuals more sensitive to stress challenges, therefore feeding forward into the exacerbation of ongoing (or greater susceptibility toward) future stress-related disease states, especially as they pertain to negative affect and overall brain health. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/24727-4 - Comparison of the therapeutical effects of dexamethasone (a synthetic glucocorticoid analogue), and G1 (a G-coupled estrogen receptor, GPER agonist) on the EAE-induced neuroinflammation
• Grantee: Carolina Demarchi Munhoz
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 16/03572-3 - The relationship between glucocorticoid receptor activation and the neuronal hyperexcitability in the basolateral amygdala in the restraint stress-induced long-lasting anxiety and their implications in the impaired contextual fear extinction
• Grantee: Carolina Demarchi Munhoz
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants