scholarly journals Elevations in EEG Power Spectra During a Go/No-go Task Following Acute Psychosocial Stress in Preschool Children

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Jeffrey Giuliano ◽  
Chantal P Delaquis ◽  
Leslie E Roos

Despite substantial research emphasizing the role of chronic stress on children’s brain function, remarkably little is known about the more immediate effects of acute stress on brain activity. Here, we analyzed changes in power spectra of the electroencephalogram (EEG) during a Go/No-go task collected both before and after a laboratory psychosocial stressor validated for preschool children. Significant increases in EEG power were observed broadly across bandwidths and electrode sites from pre- to post- manipulation measurements. Follow-up comparisons illustrate that pre- to post- increases in EEG power were more pronounced for the Stressor group than the Control group, particularly for the delta (1-3 Hz), high alpha (9-12 Hz) and beta (12-20 Hz) bandwidths. While exploratory, these results are amongst the first pieces of evidence documenting the effects of acute psychosocial stress on brain activity in young children.

Trials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elin Arvidson ◽  
Anna Sjörs Dahlman ◽  
Mats Börjesson ◽  
Lennart Gullstrand ◽  
Ingibjörg H. Jonsdottir

Abstract Background Exercise training is suggested to have a stress-buffering effect on physiological reactions to acute stress. The so-called cross-stressor adaptation hypothesis is one of many theories behind the plausible effects, proposing that the attenuated physiological reaction seen in trained individuals in response to acute exercise is also seen when the individual is exposed to acute psychosocial stress. However, few randomized controlled trials (RCT) are available in this field. Therefore, the aim of the present trial was to study the effects of a 6-month aerobic exercise intervention on the physiological response to acute laboratory stress. Methods A two-armed RCT including untrained but healthy individuals aged 20–50 years was conducted. Assessments included a peak oxygen uptake test and a psychosocial stress test (the Trier Social Stress Test). A total of 88 participants went through both baseline and follow-up measures (48 in the intervention group and 40 in the control group) with a similar proportion of women and men (20 women and 28 men in the intervention group and 18 women and 22 men in the control group). Outcome measures were adrenocorticotrophic hormone, cortisol, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate responses to acute psychosocial stress. Results Oxygen uptake and time-to-exhaustion increased significantly following the intervention, while a decrease was seen in the control group. The analyses showed attenuated responses to acute psychosocial stress for all variables in both groups at follow-up, with no differences between the groups. No correlation was seen between amount of exercise training and reactivity to the stress test. Despite the increased oxygen uptake in the intervention group, no differences were seen between the groups for any of the outcome variables at follow-up. Conclusions In this study, the cross-stressor adaptation hypothesis could not be confirmed. Both groups showed decreased reactions indicating a habituation to the stress test. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02051127. Registered on 31 January 2014—retrospectively registered.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie Uhlig ◽  
Janis Dominik Reinelt ◽  
Mark Lauckner ◽  
H. Lina Schaare ◽  
Deniz Kumral ◽  
...  

Rapid structural brain plasticity after acute stress has been shown in animals. It is unknown whether such stress-related brain changes also occur in humans, in which they have been found, using structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), after motor learning and visual stimulation. We here investigated grey matter volume (GMV) changes after acute stress in humans and tested their relation to psychophysiological stress measures. Sixty-seven healthy men (25.8 +/- 2.7 years) completed a standardized psychosocial laboratory stressor (Trier Social Stress Test) or a control version while blood, saliva, heart rate, and psychometrics were sampled. T1-weighted MP2RAGE images at 3T MRI were acquired 45 min before and 90 min after intervention onset. GMV changes were analysed using voxel-based morphometry. Associations with endocrine, autonomic, and subjective stress measures were tested with linear models. We found significant group-by-time interactions in several brain clusters including anterior/mid-cingulate cortices and bilateral insula: GMV was increased in the stress group relative to the control group, in which several clusters showed a GMV decrease. We found no significant group-by-time interaction for other MRI parameters, including cerebral blood flow, but a significant association of GMV changes with state anxiety and heart rate variability changes. In summary, we show rapid GMV changes following acute psychosocial stress in humans. The results suggest that endogenous circadian brain changes are counteracted by acute stress and generally emphasize the influence of stress on the brain.


2016 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irene Cano-López ◽  
Beatriz Cano-López ◽  
Vanesa Hidalgo ◽  
Esperanza González-Bono

AbstractAcute stress and decision making (DM) interact in life – although little is known about the role of ambiguity and risk in this interaction. The aim of this study is to clarify the effect of acute stress on DM under various conditions. Thirty-one young healthy men were randomly distributed into two groups: experimental and control. DM processes were evaluated before and after an experimental session. For the experimental group, the session consisted of an acute stress battery; and the protocol was similar for the control group but the instructions were designed to minimize acute stress. Cardiovascular variables were continuously recorded 30 minutes before the DM tasks and during the experimental session. Cortisol, glucose, mood responses, and personality factors were also assessed. Acute stress was found to enhance disadvantageous decisions under ambiguous conditions (F(1, 29) = 4.16, p = .05, η2p = .13), and this was mainly explained by the stress induced cortisol response (26.1% of variance, F(1, 30) = 11.59, p = .002). While there were no significant effects under risky conditions, inhibition responses differed between groups (F(1, 29) = 4.21, p = .05, η2p = .13) and these differences were explained by cardiovascular and psychological responses (39.1% of variance, F(3, 30) = 7.42, p < .001). Results suggest that DM tasks could compete with cognitive resources after acute stress and could have implications for intervention in acute stress effects on DM in contexts such as addiction or eating disorders.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 508
Author(s):  
Michael Schaefer ◽  
Julian Hellmann-Regen ◽  
Sören Enge

Stress belongs to the most frequent negative feelings people are confronted with in daily life. Strategies against acute stress include, e.g., relaxation techniques or medications, but it is also known that placebos can successfully reduce negative emotional stress. While it is widely held that placebos require deception to provoke a response, recent studies demonstrate intriguing evidence that placebos may work even without concealment (e.g., against anxiety or pain). Most of these studies are based on self-report questionnaires and do not include physiological measures. Here we report results of a study examining whether placebos without deception reduce acute stress. A total of 53 healthy individuals received either placebos without deception or no pills before participating in a laboratory stress test (Maastricht Acute Stress Test, MAST). We recorded self-report stress measures and cortisol responses before and after the MAST. Results showed no significant differences between the placebo and the control group, but when comparing participants with high relative to low beliefs in the power of placebos we found significant lower anxiety and cortisol responses for the placebo believers. These results show that non-deceptive placebos may successfully reduce acute anxiety and stress, but only in participants who had a strong belief in placebos. We discuss the results by suggesting that open-label placebos might be a possible treatment to reduce stress at least for some individuals.


2018 ◽  
Vol 115 (43) ◽  
pp. E10206-E10215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Immanuel G. Elbau ◽  
Benedikt Brücklmeier ◽  
Manfred Uhr ◽  
Janine Arloth ◽  
Darina Czamara ◽  
...  

Ample evidence links dysregulation of the stress response to the risk for psychiatric disorders. However, we lack an integrated understanding of mechanisms that are adaptive during the acute stress response but potentially pathogenic when dysregulated. One mechanistic link emerging from rodent studies is the interaction between stress effectors and neurovascular coupling, a process that adjusts cerebral blood flow according to local metabolic demands. Here, using task-related fMRI, we show that acute psychosocial stress rapidly impacts the peak latency of the hemodynamic response function (HRF-PL) in temporal, insular, and prefrontal regions in two independent cohorts of healthy humans. These latency effects occurred in the absence of amplitude effects and were moderated by regulatory genetic variants of KCNJ2, a known mediator of the effect of stress on vascular responsivity. Further, hippocampal HRF-PL correlated with both cortisol response and genetic variants that influence the transcriptional response to stress hormones and are associated with risk for major depression. We conclude that acute stress modulates hemodynamic response properties as part of the physiological stress response and suggest that HRF indices could serve as endophenotype of stress-related disorders.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atta Mohammad Dost ◽  
Mehmet Gunata ◽  
Onural Ozhan ◽  
Azibe Yildiz ◽  
Nigar Vardi ◽  
...  

Abstract Amikacin (AK) is frequently used in the treatment of gram-negative and some gram-positive infections. However, its use is limited due to nephrotoxicity due to the increase in reactive oxygen radicals. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of carvacrol (CAR) against AK-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Thirty-two Sprague Dawley rats were randomly divided into four groups as control (Vehicle), AK (400 mg/kg), CAR + AK (80 mg/kg CAR + 400 mg/kg AK), and AK + CAR (400 mg/kg AK + 80 mg/kg CAR) groups. AK and CAR were administered via intramuscular and per-oral for 7 days, respectively. Blood and kidney tissue samples were taken at the end of the experiment. Renal function and histopathological changes were compared, and the relevant parameters of oxidative stress and inflammation were detected. Histopathological findings (necrotic changes and dilatation and inflammatory cell infiltration) significantly increased in the AK group compared to the control group. Also, the rats in the AK group lost weight significantly. It was found that CAR treatment before and after AK significantly improved nephrotoxicity histopathologically (p < 0.05). However, this improvement was not detected biochemically. These results show that CAR treatment before and after AK improves nephrotoxicity in the histopathological level.


1995 ◽  
Vol 268 (5) ◽  
pp. R1310-R1318 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Lancel ◽  
J. Cronlein ◽  
P. Muller-Preuss ◽  
F. Holsboer

Activation of the immune system by microorganisms or specific microbial constituents promotes non-rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep (non-REMS). In this study, we assessed the effects of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on sleep duration, electroencephalogram (EEG) power spectra, and brain temperature (Tbr) in rats. Twenty-four hour recordings were made before and after intraperitoneal injection of vehicle or 30 or 100 micrograms/kg LPS at lights on. During the first 12 h after administration of both doses of LPS, Tbr was elevated, REMS duration was reduced, and non-REMS duration was unchanged, whereas the non-REMS episodes were shortened. EEG activity within non-REMS from 0.5 to 7 Hz was enhanced during hours 3-12. During the second 12-h period, the number of non-REMS and REMS episodes and the total time in both states were increased. EEG activity within non-REMS was mainly reduced in the entire frequency range (0.5-25.5 Hz). The effects of LPS did not differ between the doses. The effects of LPS on EEG power spectra are similar to those observed after sleep deprivation, i.e., a physiological intensification of non-REMS, indicating that both manipulations may activate common sleep EEG regulatory mechanisms. However, the disruption of non-REMS continuity following LPS administration at light onset contrasts the changes induced by sleep deprivation and may reflect an effect of a systemic inflammatory response on sleep maintenance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 105 (3) ◽  
pp. e762-e773 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angelina Gideon ◽  
Christine Sauter ◽  
Judy Fieres ◽  
Thilo Berger ◽  
Britta Renner ◽  
...  

Abstract Context The renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) plays an important role in cardiovascular homeostasis and its dysfunction relates to negative health consequences. Acute psychosocial stress seems to activate the RAAS in humans, but stress kinetics and interrelations of RAAS parameters compared with a nonstress control group remain inconclusive. Objective We systematically investigated in a randomized placebo-controlled design stress kinetics and interrelations of the reactivity of RAAS parameters measured in plasma and saliva to standardized acute psychosocial stress induction. Methods 58 healthy young men were assigned to either a stress or a placebo control group. The stress group underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), while the control group underwent the placebo TSST. We repeatedly assessed plasma renin, and plasma and salivary aldosterone before and up to 3 hours after stress/placebo. We simultaneously assessed salivary cortisol to validate successful stress induction and to test for interrelations. Results Acute psychosocial stress induced significant increases in all endocrine measures compared with placebo-stress (all P ≤ .041). Highest renin levels were observed 1 minute after stress, and highest aldosterone and cortisol levels 10 and 20 minutes after stress, with salivary aldosterone starting earlier at 1 minute after stress. Renin completed recovery at 10 minutes, cortisol at 60 minutes, salivary aldosterone at 90 minutes, and plasma aldosterone at 180 minutes after stress. Stress increase scores of all endocrine measures related to each other, as did renin and cortisol areas under the curve with respect to increase (AUCi) and salivary and plasma aldosterone AUCi (all P ≤ .047). Conclusions Our findings suggest that in humans acute psychosocial stress induces a differential and interrelated RAAS parameter activation pattern. Potential implications for stress-related cardiovascular risk remain to be elucidated.


2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (11) ◽  
pp. 1803-1816 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maheen Shermohammed ◽  
Pranjal H. Mehta ◽  
Joan Zhang ◽  
Cassandra M. Brandes ◽  
Luke J. Chang ◽  
...  

Cognitive reappraisal (CR) is regarded as an effective emotion regulation strategy. Acute stress, however, is believed to impair the functioning of prefrontal-based neural systems, which could result in lessened effectiveness of CR under stress. This study tested the behavioral and neurobiological impact of acute stress on CR. While undergoing fMRI, adult participants ( n = 54) passively viewed or used CR to regulate their response to negative and neutral pictures and provided ratings of their negative affect in response to each picture. Half of the participants experienced an fMRI-adapted acute psychosocial stress manipulation similar to the Trier Social Stress Test, and a control group received parallel manipulations without the stressful components. Relative to the control group, the stress group exhibited heightened stress as indexed by self-report, heart rate, and salivary cortisol throughout the scan. Contrary to our hypothesis, we found that reappraisal success was equivalent in the control and stress groups, as was electrodermal response to the pictures. Heart rate deceleration, a physiological response typically evoked by aversive pictures, was blunted in response to negative pictures and heightened in response to neutral pictures in the stress group. In the brain, we found weak evidence of stress-induced increases of reappraisal-related activity in parts of the PFC and left amygdala, but these relationships were statistically fragile. Together, these findings suggest that both the self-reported and neural effects of CR may be robust to at least moderate levels of stress, informing theoretical models of stress effects on cognition and emotion.


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