scholarly journals Copeptin concentrations during psychological stress: the PsyCo study

2014 ◽  
Vol 171 (6) ◽  
pp. 737-742 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Siegenthaler ◽  
Carla Walti ◽  
Sandrine Andrea Urwyler ◽  
Philipp Schuetz ◽  
Mirjam Christ-Crain
Keyword(s):  
Healthy Volunteers ◽  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Stress Component ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Test Period ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
Stress Effects ◽  
Lower Baseline ◽  
Post Test

ObjectiveThe prognostic/diagnostic biomarker copeptin, an arginine vasopressin surrogate, reflects physical stress. Whether copeptin concentration increases upon psychological stress is unknown. We investigated psychological stress effects on copeptin secretion in healthy volunteers and patients with central diabetes insipidus (DI).DesignA prospective observational study was conducted to study the relation between copeptin concentration and psychological stress.MethodsA total of 20 healthy adults (ten female) and eight patients with central DI (four female) underwent the Trier Social Stress Test including, in order, 30-min waiting period, 10-min anticipation period, 10-min test period and 40-min recovery. Serum copeptin and cortisol concentrations and self-rated stress component feelings were determined in the pre-/post-anticipation period, post-test period and twice post-recovery.ResultsIn healthy volunteers, the median (25th–75th percentile) copeptin concentration peaked immediately during the post-test period at 5.1 (3.2–7.0) pmol/l, vs 3.7 (2.6–5.4) pmol/l at baseline. Over the measurement course, copeptin concentration significantly elevated (coefficient; 95% CI) (0.14; 0.06–0.23, P=0.002). The important predictors of increase in copeptin concentration were feelings of tension (0.06; 0.04–0.08, P<0.001) and avoidance (0.07; 0.04–0.10; P<0.001). Copeptin and cortisol levels were associated (0.43; 0.13–0.72, P<0.005). Patients with DI had lower baseline concentrations (1.55 (1.2–3.1) pmol/l) when compared with healthy volunteers, P=0.006. Patients with DI showed no increase upon psychological stress (peak 2.15 pmol/l (1.5–2.28), P=0.79). By contrast, cortisol values were similar in patients and volunteers.ConclusionsIn healthy volunteers, copeptin levels significantly increased after psychological stress testing; this response was blunted in patients with DI.

Stress system dysfunction revealed by integrating reactivity of stress pathways to psychological stress in lean and overweight/obese men

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sisitha Udara Jayasinghe ◽  
Sarah Janet Hall ◽  
Susan Jane Torres ◽  
Anne Isabella Turner
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Systolic Blood Pressure ◽  
Diastolic Blood Pressure ◽  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Hpa Axis ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Blood Pressure Response ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
Stress System

While the patterns of response within the sympatho-adrenal medullary (SAM) system and hypothalamo-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis are interesting and important in their own accord, the overall response to acute psychological stress involves reactivity of both pathways We tested the hypothesis that consideration of the integrated response of these pathways may reveal dysregulation of the stress systems that is not evident when considering either system alone. Age matched lean and overweight/obese men were subjected to a Trier Social Stress Test and reactivity of the SAM system (salivary alpha amylase, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure and heart rate) and the HPA axis (salivary cortisol) were measured. Relative reactivity of SAM system and HPA axis was calculated as the ratio between the measures from each pathway. While analysis of reactivity of individual stress pathways showed no evidence of dysfunction in overweight/obese compared with lean men, analysis of HPA/SAM reactivity revealed significantly lower cortisol over systolic blood pressure (CoSBP) and cortisol over diastolic blood pressure (CoDBP) reactivity in overweight/obese compared with lean men. Other measures of HPA/SAM reactivity and all measures of SAM/HPA reactivity were unaltered in overweight/obese compared with lean men. These findings suggest that the cortisol response per unit of blood pressure response is blunted in men with elevated adiposity. Further, these findings support a notion of a coordinated overall approach to activation of the stress pathways with the degree of activation in one pathway being related to the degree of activation of the other.

scholarly journals Physiological responses to psychological stress: importance of adiposity in men aged 50–70 years

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 110-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
S U Jayasinghe ◽  
S J Torres ◽  
C A Nowson ◽  
A J Tilbrook ◽  
A I Turner
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Salivary Cortisol ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Area Under The Curve ◽  
Peak Height ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
Alpha Amylase ◽  
Percentage Body Fat ◽  
Salivary Alpha Amylase

We tested the hypothesis that overweight/obese men aged 50–70 years will have a greater salivary cortisol, salivary alpha amylase and heart rate (HR) responses to psychological stress compared with age matched lean men. Lean (BMI=20–25 kg/m2; n=19) and overweight/obese (BMI=27–35 kg/m2; n=17) men (50–70 years) were subjected to a well-characterised psychological stress (Trier Social Stress Test, TSST) at 1500 h. Concentrations of cortisol and alpha amylase were measured in saliva samples collected every 7–15 min from 1400 to 1700 h. HR was recorded using electrocardiogram. Body weight, BMI, percentage body fat, resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure and mean arterial pressure were significantly higher (P<0.05) in overweight/obese men compared with lean men. Both groups responded to the TSST with a substantial elevation in salivary cortisol (372%), salivary alpha amylase (123%) and HR (22%). These responses did not differ significantly between the groups (time×treatment interaction for salivary cortisol, salivary alpha amylase and HR; P=0.187, P=0.288, P=0.550, respectively). There were no significant differences between the groups for pretreatment values, peak height, difference between pretreatment values and peak height (reactivity) or area under the curve for salivary cortisol, salivary alpha amylase or HR (P>0.05 for all). The results showed that, for men with a moderate level of overweight/obesity who were otherwise healthy, the response of salivary cortisol, salivary alpha amylase and HR to acute psychological stress was not impaired.

scholarly journals Contemplative Training and Psychological Stress: an Analysis of First-person Accounts

Mindfulness ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liudmila Gamaiunova ◽  
Pierre-Yves Brandt ◽  
Matthias Kliegel
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Stress Response ◽  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Subjective Experience ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Attention Allocation ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
First Person ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Objectives Several studies have investigated the relationship between contemplative approaches and psychobiological stress response; however, this area of research is still new, the mechanisms of the relationship between the stress response attenuation and contemplative training have not been fully delineated, and little is known about the effects of contemplative practice on the ways psychological stress is experienced. This study aimed to explore the first-person experience of psychological stress in meditation practitioners. Methods We conducted short semi-structured interviews with twenty-five meditation practitioners and twenty meditation-naïve controls immediately after they had undergone a laboratory task (the Trier Social Stress Test). A mixed-method approach was used to analyze the interviews. Thematic analysis was combined with descriptive statistics of the qualitative information that had been converted to quantitative data. Results Experiences instantiating main themes were identified as follows: (1) primary experiences encountered, describing the most salient experiences associated with the task; (2) reasons for stress, delineating the analyses of why the task was stressful; (3) affect, dealing with emotional experiences during the task; (4) emotion regulation; and (5) attention allocation describing regulatory strategies employed by the participants. Responses to subjective stress experience in meditation practitioners included use of humor, presence of positive affect, combinations of different types of emotion regulation strategies, and adaptive attention allocation. Conclusions This study elucidates particularities of meditators’ subjective experience of psychological stress, provides new insights on the mechanisms of meditation effect on the stress response, and proposes new directions for research.

scholarly journals Changes Occurring on the Activity of Salivary Alpha-Amylase Proteoforms in Two Naturalistic Situations Using a Spectrophotometric Assay

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 227
Author(s):  
María D. Contreras-Aguilar ◽  
Sandra V. Mateo ◽  
Fernando Tecles ◽  
Christophe Hirtz ◽  
Damián Escribano ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Spectrophotometric Assay ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
Alpha Amylase ◽  
Salivary Alpha Amylase ◽  
Additional Information ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Stress Models

This study aimed to evaluate the changes in the activity of total salivary alpha-amylase (TsAA) and both the non-glycosylated and glycosylated salivary alpha-amylase proteoforms (NGsAA and GsAA, respectively) in physical and psychological stress models, estimated using a simple and easily set-up method. The method used was a spectrophotometric assay with 2-chloro-4-nitrophenyl-α-D-maltotriose (CNPG3) as a substrate, incubated with Concanavalin A (ConA) to remove most of the glycosylated protein from the sample. This method allowed the measurement of TsAA and estimation of NGsAA and GsAA activities with imprecision lower than 10%. When this method was applied to two different stress models, differences in the responses of the proteoforms were observed, with the NGsAA activity showing changes of higher magnitude after stress induction than the GsAA activity, and the highest correlation with the State–Trait Anxiety Inventory Scale in the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). In conclusion, the activity of the two main sAA proteoforms can be easily estimated in saliva, and their measurement can provide additional information on TsAA activity in physical or psychological stress situations.

Messung der Stimmfrequenz im Paargespräch – Chancen für Diagnostik und Intervention in der Paartherapie

2020 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 217-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisanne J. Bulling ◽  
Isabella C. Bertschi ◽  
Céline C. Stadelmann ◽  
Tina Niederer ◽  
Guy Bodenmann
Keyword(s):  
Social Stress ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test

Zusammenfassung. Die vorliegende Arbeit stellt die bisherigen empirischen Befunde zur Sprachgrundfrequenz (f0) in Paargesprächen vor und untersucht, wie sich die f0 nach einer experimentellen Stressinduktion im anschließenden spontanen Gespräch zwischen den Partner_innen verändert, wie die f0 mit der verbalen Stressäußerung zusammenhängt und wie sie zwischen den beiden Partner_innen kovariiert. Von 128 heterosexuellen Paaren nahm jeweils eine Person pro Paar am Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) teil. Die dem TSST vorangehende und anschließende naturalistische Interaktion zwischen den Partner_innen wurde gefilmt und nach Gesprächsthema und Art der Stressäußerung kodiert. Wie vorherige Studien zur f0 im Paargespräch zeigte auch die vorliegende Studie, dass die f0 wichtige Informationen über die Partnerschaft enthält. Während eine Erhöhung der f0 in Gesprächen über einen paarinternen Stressor (d.h. bei Konfliktgesprächen) mit negativen Kommunikationsmustern einherging, zeigte die vorliegende Studie, dass die f0 bei Gesprächen über einen paarexternen Stressor (d.h. beim TSST) mit emotionsorientierten Stressäußerungen einherging, also einer für den Stressbewältigungsprozess förderlichen Art der Kommunikation. Die Oszillatorenmodelle zeigen darüber hinaus, dass eine Kopplung der f0 zwischen den Partner_innen besteht, was darauf hindeutet, dass die nicht gestressten Partner_innen auf die paraverbalen Stressäußerungen der gestressten Partner_innen mit ihren eigenen paraverbalen Stressäußerungen reagieren.

Immunoassay or LC-MS/MS for the measurement of salivary cortisol in children?

2016 ◽  
Vol 54 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoon Ju Bae ◽  
Alexander Gaudl ◽  
Sonia Jaeger ◽  
Stephanie Stadelmann ◽  
Andreas Hiemisch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Salivary Cortisol ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Externalizing Disorders ◽  
Cross Reactivity ◽  
Trier Social Stress Test ◽  
Healthy Children ◽  
Kinetic Assay ◽  
The Difference

AbstractBackground:Dysregulation of the adrenal cortex has been assessed with measurement of salivary cortisol. So far salivary cortisol is routinely measured with immunoassay (IA). However, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (MS) is known to offer better specificity. We compared the concentrations of salivary cortisol measured by MS and IA at basal and stress induced conditions and evaluated reasons for the difference in method-dependent cortisol results.Methods:Saliva samples (n=2703) were collected from 169 children (age range: 8–14 years; 81 healthy children; 55 with internalizing and 33 with externalizing disorders) under circadian conditions and during the Trier Social Stress Test for Children (TSST-C). Biochemical analyses were performed with MS for cortisol and cortisone, IA (IBL, RE62011) for cortisol, and enzyme kinetic assay for α-amylase.Results:MS and IA showed mostly comparable results for circadian activity and TSST-C response with similar statistical power. However, IA measured cortisol concentrations about 2.39-fold higher than MS. We found that this difference in measured values between MS and IA was mainly due to different standardization of IA compared to MS. In addition, at cortisol IA concentration below 5 nmol/L, cross-reactivity with cortisone was found to contribute to the lower concordance between MS and IA.Conclusions:Immunoassay and LC-MS/MS were largely comparable in the interpretation of salivary cortisol dynamics in stress research. But the IA method revealed a restricted accuracy in the measuring range below 5 nmol/L.

scholarly journals Salivary Proteome Changes in Response to Acute Psychological Stress Due to an Oral Exam Simulation in University Students: Effect of an Olfactory Stimulus

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (9) ◽  
pp. 4295
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Zallocco ◽  
Laura Giusti ◽  
Maurizio Ronci ◽  
Andrea Mussini ◽  
Marco Trerotola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Psychological Stress ◽  
Social Stress ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Olfactory Stimulus ◽  
Oral Exam ◽  
Relaxation Phase ◽  
Pleasant Odor ◽  
Proteome Changes

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) plays a crucial role both in acute and chronic psychological stress eliciting changes in many local and systemic physiological and biochemical processes. Salivary secretion is also regulated by ANS. In this study, we explored salivary proteome changes produced in thirty-eight University students by a test stress, which simulated an oral exam. Students underwent a relaxation phase followed by the stress test during which an electrocardiogram was recorded. To evaluate the effect of an olfactory stimulus, half of the students were exposed to a pleasant odor diffused in the room throughout the whole session. Saliva samples were collected after the relaxation phase (T0) and the stress test (T1). State anxiety was also evaluated at T0 and T1. Salivary proteins were separated by two-dimensional electrophoresis, and patterns at different times were compared. Spots differentially expressed were trypsin digested and identified by mass spectrometry. Western blot analysis was used to validate proteomic results. Anxiety scores and heart rate changes indicated that the fake exam induced anxiety. Significant changes of α-amylase, polymeric immunoglobulin receptor (PIGR), and immunoglobulin α chain (IGHA) secretion were observed after the stress test was performed in the two conditions. Moreover, the presence of pleasant odor reduced the acute social stress affecting salivary proteome changes. Therefore, saliva proteomic analysis was a useful approach to evaluate the rapid responses associated to an acute stress test also highlighting known biomarkers.

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