Stress response and the adolescent transition: Performance versus peer rejection stressors

AbstractLittle is known about normative variation in stress response over the adolescent transition. This study examined neuroendocrine and cardiovascular responses to performance and peer rejection stressors over the adolescent transition in a normative sample. Participants were 82 healthy children (ages 7–12 years, n = 39, 22 females) and adolescents (ages 13–17, n = 43, 20 females) recruited through community postings. Following a habituation session, participants completed a performance (public speaking, mental arithmetic, mirror tracing) or peer rejection (exclusion challenges) stress session. Salivary cortisol, salivary alpha amylase (sAA), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP), and heart rate were measured throughout. Adolescents showed significantly greater cortisol, sAA, SBP, and DBP stress response relative to children. Developmental differences were most pronounced in the performance stress session for cortisol and DBP and in the peer rejection session for sAA and SBP. Heightened physiological stress responses in typical adolescents may facilitate adaptation to new challenges of adolescence and adulthood. In high-risk adolescents, this normative shift may tip the balance toward stress response dysregulation associated with depression and other psychopathology. Specificity of physiological response by stressor type highlights the importance of a multisystem approach to the psychobiology of stress and may also have implications for understanding trajectories to psychopathology.

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Effects of clove oil on the stress response of matrinxã (Brycon cephalus) subjected to transport

Acta Amazonica ◽

10.1590/s0044-59672005000200018 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 289-295 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Luís Antônio Kioshi Aoki Inoue ◽

Luís Orlando B. Afonso ◽

George K. Iwama ◽

Gilberto Moraes

Keyword(s):

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Plasma Cortisol ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Liver Glycogen ◽

Energetic Cost ◽

Clove Oil ◽

Plastic Bags ◽

Transport Stress ◽

Aquaculture Facilities

Fish transport is one of the most stressful procedures in aquaculture facilities. The present work evaluated the stress response of matrinxã to transportation procedures, and the use of clove oil as an alternative to reduce the stress response to transport in matrinxã (Brycon cephalus). Clove oil solutions were tested in concentrations of 0, 1, 5 and 10 mg/L during matrinxã transportation in plastic bags, supplied with water and oxygen as the usual field procedures in Brazil. Clove oil reduced some of the physiological stress responses (plasma cortisol, glucose and ions) that we measured. The high energetic cost to matrinxã cope with the transport stress was clear by the decrease of liver glycogen after transport. Our results suggest that clove oil (5 mg/l) can mitigate the stress response in matrinxã subjected to transport.

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Stress and Substance Misuse

Substance Use Disorders ◽

10.1093/med/9780190920197.003.0006 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 101-118

Author(s):

James M. Bjork ◽

Nicholas D. Thomson

Keyword(s):

Substance Use ◽

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Acute Stress ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Solution Space ◽

Chronic Administration ◽

Behavioral Repertoire ◽

Physiological Stress Response ◽

Response Systems

Stress is both a critical contributor and consequence of substance use disorder (SUD). First, exaggerated subjective stress responses are characteristic of affective symptomatology such as depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder (sometimes stemming from histories of abuse) that have been prognostic of development of addiction in longitudinal studies. Substance use is negatively reinforced in many at-risk and addicted individuals because it may acutely alleviate stress. Second, chronic administration of commonly abused substances alters physiological stress response systems, especially during acute withdrawal. Third, acute stress responses blunt the addicted individual’s frontocortically mediated behavioral repertoire (solution space) in favor of reflexive behavioral biases toward relief-based substance use. Therefore, acute stress responses are a strong trigger for relapse to substance use during extended recovery. These findings have collectively led to approaches to SUD relapse prevention that pharmacologically blunt components of the stress response, but these agents have not reliably shown success in human clinical trials. This chapter reviews these different relationships between stress and addiction and offers future avenues for additional research.

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Type 1 long QT syndrome and psychological stress in a laboratory setting

Journal of Health Psychology ◽

10.1177/1359105317751617 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 25 (9) ◽

pp. 1213-1221 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Ilmari Määttänen ◽

Niklas Ravaja ◽

Pentti Henttonen ◽

Sampsa Puttonen ◽

Kristian Paavonen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stress Responses ◽

Long Qt Syndrome ◽

Mental Stress ◽

Mental Arithmetic ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Long Qt ◽

Mutation Carriers ◽

Asymptomatic Patients ◽

Qt Syndrome

Trait-like sensitivity to stress in long QT syndrome patients has been documented previously. In addition, mental stress has been associated with symptomatic status of long QT syndrome. We examined whether the symptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients would be more sensitive to mental stress compared to asymptomatic patients and whether there would be differences in task-related physiological stress reactions between type 1 long QT syndrome patients and healthy individuals. The study population consisted of 21 symptomatic and 23 asymptomatic molecularly defined KCNQ1 mutation carriers, their 32 non-carrier relatives and 46 non-related healthy controls, with mean ages of 37, 39, 35 and 23 years, respectively. Electrocardiography was utilised to calculate inter-beat interval and high frequency and low frequency heart rate variability. Blood pressure was measured and mean arterial pressure and pulse pressure were calculated. Stress was induced using three different tasks: mental arithmetic, reaction time and public speech. Stress responses of symptomatic and asymptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients were not statistically different in any of the stress tasks. Short-term physiological stress reactivity of symptomatic type 1 long QT syndrome patients appears to be normal and does not enhance the risk assessment of asymptomatic mutation carriers.

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Adrenocortical stress responses influence an invasive vertebrate's fitness in an extreme environment

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2013.1444 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 280 (1768) ◽

pp. 20131444 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

Tim S. Jessop ◽

Mike Letnic ◽

Jonathan K. Webb ◽

Tim Dempster

Keyword(s):

Invasive Species ◽

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Range Expansion ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Extreme Environments ◽

Extreme Environment ◽

Evaporative Water ◽

Hot Dry Season ◽

Adrenocortical Stress Response

Continued range expansion into physiologically challenging environments requires invasive species to maintain adaptive phenotypic performance. The adrenocortical stress response, governed in part by glucocorticoid hormones, influences physiological and behavioural responses of vertebrates to environmental stressors. However, any adaptive role of this response in invasive populations that are expanding into extreme environments is currently unclear. We experimentally manipulated the adrenocortical stress response of invasive cane toads ( Rhinella marina ) to investigate its effect on phenotypic performance and fitness at the species' range front in the Tanami Desert, Australia. Here, toads are vulnerable to overheating and dehydration during the annual hot–dry season and display elevated plasma corticosterone levels indicative of severe environmental stress. By comparing unmanipulated control toads with toads whose adrenocortical stress response was manipulated to increase acute physiological stress responsiveness, we found that control toads had significantly reduced daily evaporative water loss and higher survival relative to the experimental animals. The adrenocortical stress response hence appears essential in facilitating complex phenotypic performance and setting fitness trajectories of individuals from invasive species during range expansion.

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Intrinsic Laryngeal Muscle Response to a Public Speech Preparation Stressor

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/2018_jslhr-s-17-0153 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 61 (7) ◽

pp. 1525-1543 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Leah B. Helou ◽

Clark A. Rosen ◽

Wei Wang ◽

Katherine Verdolini Abbott

Keyword(s):

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Repeated Measures ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Negative Control ◽

Laryngeal Muscle ◽

Repeated Measures Design ◽

Tibialis Muscle ◽

Intrinsic Laryngeal Muscle ◽

Control Activation

Purpose Research suggests that abnormal levels of intrinsic laryngeal muscle (ILM) contraction is a potential causal factor in stress-induced voice disorders. This study seeks to characterize the ILM stress response in a cohort of vocally healthy women. Method The authors used an unblinded, nonrandomized, repeated-measures design. Forty vocally healthy female adults were subjected to a stressful speech preparation task. Measurements of heart rate, blood pressure, trapezius muscle (positive control) activation, and tibialis muscle (negative control) activation were obtained from 37 participants before and during stressor exposure, in a nonvoice and nonspeaking task paradigm, to confirm physiological stress response compared to baseline. Fine wire electromyography of the ILMs (posterior cricoarytenoid, thyroarytenoid/lateral cricoarytenoid muscle complex, and cricothyroid) was performed simultaneously so that the activity of these muscles could be measured prior to and during stressor exposure. Results The protocol successfully elicited the typical and expected physiological stress responses. Findings supported the hypothesis that, in some individuals, the ILMs significantly increase in activity during stress reactions compared to baseline, as do the control muscles. Conclusions This study characterizes ILM responses to psychological stress in vocally healthy participants. Some of the female adults in this study appeared to be “laryngeal stress responders,” as evidenced by increased activity of the ILMs during a silent (i.e., nonvocal, nonspeech) speech preparation task that they considered to be stressful.

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Limbic Pathways to Stress Control

10.1093/med/9780190215422.003.0008 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

James P. Herman

Keyword(s):

Neural Networks ◽

Prefrontal Cortex ◽

Stress Response ◽

Hpa Axis ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Subcortical Structures ◽

Stress Control ◽

Stress Activation

Appropriate control of the HPA (hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis) is required for adaptation to physiological and environmental challenges. Inadequate control is linked to numerous stress-related pathologies, including PTSD, highlighting its importance in linking physiological stress responses with behavioral coping strategies. This chapter highlights neurocircuit mechanisms underlying HPA axis adaptation and pathology. Control of the HPA stress response is mediated by the coordinated activity of numerous limbic brain regions, including the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and amygdala. In general, hippocampal output inhibits anticipatory HPA axis responses, whereas amygdala subnuclei participate in stress activation. The prefrontal cortex plays an important role in inhibition of context-dependent stress responses. These regions converge on subcortical structures that relay information to paraventricular nucleus corticotropin-releasing hormone neurons, controlling the magnitude and duration of HPA axis stress responses. The output of these neural networks determines the net effect on glucocorticoid secretion, both within the normal adaptive range and in pathological circumstances.

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Geographic Variation in Behavior of a Primate Taxon: Stress Responses as a Proximate Mechanism in the Evolution of Social Behavior

Geographic Variation in Behavior ◽

10.1093/oso/9780195082951.003.0009 ◽

1999 ◽

Author(s):

Sue Boinski

Keyword(s):

Stress Response ◽

Social Behavior ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Inclusive Fitness ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Social Conditions ◽

Laboratory Animals ◽

Response Patterns ◽

Behavioral Strategies ◽

Proximate Mechanism

Temperament is a complex behavioral trait that describes characteristic patterns of response to environmental, particularly social, conditions and perturbations. Disparities in the tendency to approach or avoid novelty or readiness to engage in aggressive interactions have been documented in comparisons between species (Christian 1970), subspecies (Gonzalez et al. 1981), populations within species (Champoux et al. 1994), inbred lines of laboratory animals (Scott and Fuller 1965), domesticated versus wild populations (Price 1984), and individuals within a species (Benus et al. 1992). Differences in physiological stress response systems (Selye 1937) are commonly identified as an important proximate mechanism underlying these temperament differences (Huntingford and Turner 1987, Kagan et al. 1988). Social systems of animals are perceived as emerging from relationships between individuals (Hinde 1983). Individual interactions, in turn, are hypothesized to reflect individual behavioral strategies which maximize inclusive fitness (Silk 1987). Selection on a physiological system, which can dramatically affect the pattern and outcomes of individual interactions, could produce evolutionary change in social organization and social behavior. Many workers explicitly suggest that temperament differences among primate species are adaptive in many instances, yet admit that the specific ecological and social selection pressures to which the neuroendocrine system is responding are often unclear (Thierry 1985, Clarke et al. 1988, Richard et al. 1989). Species-level comparisons have not offered many testable comparative models, probably because of confounding effects such as large phylogentic distances or uncertain phylogeny, inadequate knowledge of ecological and social conditions in the wild, drift, and convergent evolution. In short, little progress has been made toward understanding the evolution of stress-response patterns in primates. In this chapter I suggest that comparisons of geographically and genetically separated primate populations or subspecies may be an alternative and more successful approach to addressing the evolution of stress responses and the disparate social behaviors that result. Population and geographic comparisons are likely to be profitable for three reasons: (1) comparisons are less likely to be confounded by phylogenetic disparities (Arnold 1992), (2) the factors imposing different selective regimes among localities can perhaps be more readily identified, (3) hypothesis testing may be facilitated because populations suitable for testing a model will be easier to identify than new species.

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Does Physiological Stress Slow Down Wound Healing in Patients With Diabetes?

Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology ◽

10.1177/1932296817705397 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 685-692 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Javad Razjouyan ◽

Gurtej Singh Grewal ◽

Talal K. Talal ◽

David G. Armstrong ◽

Joseph L. Mills ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wound Healing ◽

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Vagal Tone ◽

Clinical Information ◽

Classification Performance ◽

Susceptibility To Infection ◽

Physiological Stress Response ◽

Patients With Diabetes

Background: Poor healing is an important contributing factor to amputation among patients with diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). Physiological stress may slow wound healing and increase susceptibility to infection. Objectives: The objective was to examine the association between heart rate variability (HRV) as an indicator of physiological stress response and healing speed (HealSpeed) among outpatients with active DFUs. Design and Methods: Ambulatory patients with diabetes with DFUs (n = 25, age: 59.3 ± 8.3 years) were recruited. HRV during pre–wound dressing was measured using a wearable sensor attached to participants’ chest. HRVs were quantified in both time and frequency domains to assess physiological stress response and vagal tone (relaxation). Change in wound size between two consecutive visits was used to estimate HealSpeed. Participants were then categorized into slow healing and fast healing groups. Between the two groups, comparisons were performed for demographic, clinical, and HRV derived parameters. Associations between different descriptors of HRV and HealSpeed were also assessed. Results: HealSpeed was significantly correlated with both vagal tone ( r = –.705, P = .001) and stress response ( r = .713, P = .001) extracted from frequency domain. No between-group differences were observed except those from HRV-derived parameters. Models based on HRVs were the highest predictors of slow/fast HealSpeed (AUC > 0.90), while models based on demographic and clinical information had poor classification performance (AUC = 0.44). Conclusion: This study confirms an association between stress/vagal tone and wound healing in patients with DFUs. In particular, it highlights the importance of vagal tone (relaxation) in expediting wound healing. It also demonstrates the feasibility of assessing physiological stress responses using wearable technology in outpatient clinic during routine clinic visits.

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Tameness and stress physiology in a predator-naive island species confronted with novel predation threat

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2006.3755 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 274 (1609) ◽

pp. 577-582 ◽

Cited By ~ 47

Author(s):

Thomas Rödl ◽

Silke Berger ◽

L Michael Romero ◽

Martin Wikelski

Keyword(s):

Stress Response ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Behavioural Plasticity ◽

Stress System ◽

Physiological Control ◽

Island Species ◽

Introduced Predators ◽

Order Of Magnitude ◽

Marine Iguanas

Tame behaviour, i.e. low wariness, in terrestrial island species is often attributed to low predation pressure. However, we know little about its physiological control and its flexibility in the face of predator introductions. Marine iguanas ( Amblyrhynchus cristatus ) on the Galápagos Islands are a good model to study the physiological correlates of low wariness. They have lived virtually without predation for 5–15 Myr until some populations were first confronted with feral cats and dogs some 150 years ago. We tested whether and to what extent marine iguanas can adjust their behaviour and endocrine stress response to novel predation threats. Here, we show that a corticosterone stress response to experimental chasing is absent in naive animals, but is quickly restored with experience. Initially, low wariness also increases with experience, but remains an order of magnitude too low to allow successful escape from introduced predators. Our data suggest that the ability of marine iguanas to cope with predator introductions is limited by narrow reaction norms for behavioural wariness rather than by constraints in the underlying physiological stress system. In general, we predict that island endemics show flexible physiological stress responses but are restricted by narrow behavioural plasticity.

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Relationships between personality traits and the physiological stress response in a wild mammal

Current Zoology ◽

10.1093/cz/zoz040 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 66 (2) ◽

pp. 197-204 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Francesca Santicchia ◽

Lucas A Wauters ◽

Ben Dantzer ◽

Sarah E Westrick ◽

Nicola Ferrari ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stress Response ◽

Personality Traits ◽

Stress Responses ◽

Physiological Stress ◽

Coping Styles ◽

Strong Association ◽

Mirror Image ◽

Sciurus Carolinensis ◽

Wild Populations ◽

Fecal Glucocorticoid Metabolites

Abstract Glucocorticoids (GCs) are involved in the regulation of an animal’s energetic state. Under stressful situations, they are part of the neuroendocrine response to cope with environmental challenges. Animals react to aversive stimuli also through behavioral responses, defined as coping styles. Both in captive and wild populations, individuals differ in their behavior along a proactive–reactive continuum. Proactive animals exhibit a bold, active-explorative and social personality, whereas reactive ones are shy, less active-explorative and less social. Here, we test the hypothesis that personality traits and physiological responses to stressors covary, with more proactive individuals having a less pronounced GC stress response. In wild populations of invasive gray squirrels Sciurus carolinensis, we measured fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (FGMs), an integrated measure of circulating GCs, and 3 personality traits (activity, sociability, and exploration) derived from open field test (OFT) and mirror image stimulation (MIS) test. Gray squirrels had higher FGMs in Autumn than in Winter and males with scrotal testes had higher FGMs than nonbreeding males. Personality varied with body mass and population density. Squirrels expressed more activity-exploration at higher than at lower density and heavier squirrels had higher scores for activity-exploration than animals that weighed less. Variation in FGM concentrations was not correlated with the expression of the 3 personality traits. Hence, our results do not support a strong association between the behavioral and physiological stress responses but show that in wild populations, where animals experience varying environmental conditions, the GC endocrine response and the expression of personality are uncorrelated traits among individuals.

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