Development of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis and the Stress Response

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire-Dominique Walker ◽  
K.J.S. Anand ◽  
PAUL M. Plotsky
Keyword(s):  
Stress Response ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal Axis ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Adrenal Axis ◽  
Pituitary Adrenal Axis

scholarly journals Postnatal Stress in Birds: A Novel Model of Glucocorticoid Programming of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis

Endocrinology ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 150 (4) ◽  
pp. 1931-1934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen A. Spencer ◽  
Neil P. Evans ◽  
Patricia Monaghan
Keyword(s):  
Stress Response ◽  
Physiological Response ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal Axis ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Adrenal Axis ◽  
Postnatal Stress ◽  
Novel Model ◽  
Pituitary Adrenal Axis

There is growing international interest in how environmental conditions experienced during development can shape adult phenotypes and the extent to which such induced changes are adaptive. One physiological system that links an individual to changes in environmental circumstances during development is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Mammalian studies have linked early postnatal stress to later changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis; however, the physiological link [lactational corticosterone (CORT) transfer] between mother and offspring during postnatal development constrains the ability to determine the direct effects of such stressors on subsequent physiology and behavior. Here we present a novel model using an avian species, the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), in which maternal hormonal transfer during postnatal development is likely to be absent. Postnatal exposure of chicks to the stress hormone CORT was manipulated for a 16-d period up until nutritional independence (28 d), and the long-term effects on the physiological response to stress determined. CORT doses were scaled to mimic the physiological response of juvenile birds to a capture-handling-restraint protocol. CORT-fed birds showed exaggerated and prolonged responses to acute stress at 60 d of age. Our results clearly demonstrate that postnatal stress has significant long-term effects on the physiological stress response in birds and provides a potential mechanism underlying long-term behavioural responses to developmental conditions. This study represents the first direct evidence for postnatal glucocorticoid programming of the stress response using this novel model for postnatal stress. This model therefore provides an important tool with which to investigate the role of glucocorticoids in shaping adult phenotypes.

scholarly journals Stress History and Pubertal Development Interact to Shape Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Plasticity

Endocrinology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 147 (4) ◽  
pp. 1664-1674 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell D. Romeo ◽  
Rudy Bellani ◽  
Ilia N. Karatsoreos ◽  
Nara Chhua ◽  
Mary Vernov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stress Response ◽  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Arginine Vasopressin ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal Axis ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Pubertal Maturation ◽  
Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽  
Adrenal Axis ◽  
Acute And Chronic Stress ◽  
Pituitary Adrenal Axis

Both the magnitude and the duration of the hormonal stress response change dramatically during neonatal development and aging as well as with prior experience with a stressor. However, surprisingly little is known with regard to how pubertal maturation and experience with stress interact to affect hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responsiveness. Because adolescence is a period of neurodevelopmental vulnerabilities and opportunities that may be especially sensitive to stress, it is imperative to more fully understand these interactions. Thus, we examined hormonal and neural responses in prepubertal (28 d of age) and adult (77 d of age) male rats after exposure to acute (30 min) or more chronic (30 min/d for 7 d) restraint stress. We report here that after acute stress, prepubertal males exhibited a significantly prolonged hormonal stress response (e.g. ACTH and total and free corticosterone) compared with adults. In contrast, after chronic stress, prepubertal males exhibited a higher response immediately after the stressor, but a faster return to baseline, compared with adults. Additionally, we demonstrate that this differential stress reactivity is associated with differential neuronal activation in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, as measured by FOS immunohistochemistry. Using triple-label immunofluorescence histochemistry, we found that a larger proportion of CRH, but not arginine vasopressin, cells are activated in the arginine vasopressin in response to both acute and chronic stress in prepubertal animals compared with adults. These data indicate that experience-dependent plasticity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal neuroendocrine axis is significantly influenced by pubertal maturation.

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