Neuropsychiatry phenotype in asthma: Psychological stress-induced alterations of the neuroendocrine-immune system in allergic airway inflammation

Pim1 inactivating induces RUNX3 upregulation that improves/alleviates airway inflammation and mucus hypersecretion in vitro and in vivo

PURPOSE

Our research aimed to evaluate whether proto-oncogene serine/threonine-protein kinase Pim-1 (Pim1) inactivation could attenuate asthma by promoting runt-related transcription factor 3 (Runx3) expression and explore the underlying molecular mechanism.

METHOD

Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA, 50 nM) was used to induce inflammation in BEAS-2B human airway epithelial cells. ELISA and immunofluorescence double staining confirmed inflammation modelling and differential expression of Pim1 and Runx3. Pim1 inhibitor (SGI-1776) and Runx3 siRNA (siRunx3) were used in this study. Apoptosis, inflammation, MUC5AC protein expression, Pim1 kinase and Runx3 protein expression, and PI3K/AKT/nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway-associated protein expression were also assessed by flow cytometry, immunofluorescence and western blot. The effects of Pim1 inactivation on airway inflammation, pathological injury and mucus secretion in wild-type and Runx3 knockout mice were observed by in vivo experiments.

RESULTS

The results of the in vitro experiments showed that PMA stimulation causes BEAS-2B cell apoptosis and promotes the MUC5AC expression. In addition, PMA stimulation activated the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway. SGI-1776 treatment partially reversed these effects, whereas siRunx3 attenuated the effects of SGI-1776 on PMA-stimulated BEAS-2B cells. In vivo experiments showed that in Runx3-KO asthmatic mice, inhibition of Pim1 kinase had less effect on airway inflammation, pathological injury and mucus secretion. Meanwhile, Pim1 kinase expression was higher in Runx3-KO asthmatic mice than in wild-type asthmatic mice. Furthermore, inhibition of Pim1 kinase inhibited activation of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway, whereas these effects were attenuated in Runx3-KO mice.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that Pim1 inactivation can ameliorate airway inflammation and mucus hypersecretion through upregulation of Runx3 and the effect could be mediated through modulation of the PI3K/AKT/NF-κB pathway.

A nomogram for predicting disability-free survival in older adults over 15 years: A population-based cohort study

BACKGROUND

This article aimed to develop and validate a simple-to-use nomogram to predict 15-year disability-free survival among older adults.

METHODS

A cohort of 1878 disability-free participants aged ≥60 was followed for 15 years. Participants were randomly divided into a training cohort for nomogram development (n = 1314 [70 %]) and validation cohort to confirm the model's performance (n = 564 [30 %]). Information on socio-demographic, lifestyle factors, the Life Satisfaction Index A (LSI-A), chronic diseases, and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score, and biomarkers were collected through interviews, clinical and neuropsychological examinations, and medical records. Disability-free survival was defined as survival in the absence of dementia and physical disability, and the composite endpoint is first occurrence of events of death, dementia and physical disability. We developed a nomogram summing the number of risk points corresponding to weighted covariates to predict disability-free survival. Validation of the nomogram using C statistic, calibration plots, and Kaplan-Meier curves.

RESULTS

In the multivariate-adjusted model, factors associated with composite end point were younger age, high MMSE (hazard ratio [HR], 0.93; [95 % CI, 0.87-0.99]), high LSI-A (0.78, [0.64-0.97]), non-smoking (0.74, [0.59-0.94]), engagement in physical leisure activity (0.62, [0.48-0.78]), and absence of chronic diseases (0.78, [0.66-0.91]). Incorporating these 6 factors, the nomogram achieved C-statistics of 0.78 (95 % CI, 0.75-0.81) and 0.77 (95 % CI, 0.74-0.80) in predicting disability-free survival in the training and validation cohorts, respectively, and had good calibration curves.

CONCLUSION

The nomogram was able to predict long-term of disability-free survival and performed well on internal validation, and may be considered for use in effective surveillance, promote, management of clinical and public health ageing.

Assessment and management of anxiety and depression in a pediatric high-risk asthma clinic

OBJECTIVE

The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of positive mental health (MH) screens in a pediatric high-risk asthma (HRA) clinic population, and to determine the success rate of engagement in MH services before and after adding a clinical psychologist to our multidisciplinary clinic.

HYPOTHESIS

We hypothesized that the HRA population would have a higher prevalence of anxiety/depression symptoms than that previously reported for the general pediatric asthma population. We anticipated that the presence of an embedded psychologist in HRA clinic would facilitate successful connection to MH services.

METHODS

Pediatric patients in the HRA clinic were prospectively screened for anxiety and depression using validated screening instruments. Positive scores were referred for MH services. Time to MH service engagement was recorded before and after the addition of a clinical psychologist.

RESULTS

A total of 186 patients were screened; 60% had a positive MH screen. Female sex was associated with higher median scores on both screening tools and higher likelihood of engagement in MH services. After addition of a clinical psychologist, new engagement in MH services increased (20% vs. 80%, p < 0.0001), and median time to engagement decreased (14.5 vs. 0.0 months, p = 0.003).

CONCLUSION

There is a high prevalence of anxiety and depression in this pediatric HRA population. Success of engagement in MH services improved after a clinical psychologist joined our multidisciplinary team, suggesting access to care as a primary barrier to engagement.

Association between dimensions of trauma-related psychopathology and asthma in trauma-exposed women

Introduction

Exposure to traumatic events and stressful life experiences are associated with a wide range of adverse mental and physical health outcomes. Studies have found post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety sensitivity occurrence to be common in addition to inflammatory diseases like asthma, especially in women. Moreover, overlapping neurobiological mechanisms have been linked to both PTSD and asthma.

Methods

In the current study, n = 508 women reported on presence of lifetime asthma diagnosis and symptoms of trauma-related psychopathology including PTSD and depression. A separate group of female participants (n = 64) reported on asthma, PTSD, depression and anxiety sensitivity, and underwent functional MRI scans during a fearful faces task, and their anterior insula responses were analyzed.

Results

Overall, PTSD and depression severity were significantly higher in those with asthma versus those without asthma. There was a positive association between anterior insula response to social threat cues and depression symptoms only among individuals without a lifetime presence of asthma.

Discussion

These findings provide continued evidence on the interactions between stress, neural mechanisms involved in interoception and salience detection, and trauma-related psychopathology.

Horticultural therapy for stress reduction: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction

Horticultural therapy has been increasingly accepted as a non-pharmacological stress reduction treatment. Previous studies have demonstrated its therapeutic effects, with the effect varying according to the populations, settings, and interventions of horticultural therapy. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive review of the current literature regarding the effectiveness of horticultural therapy in reducing stress.

Methods

We selected databases including PubMed, Cochrane Library, Embase, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, and VIP Data as our data source, and the original search was completed in January 2023.

Results

Our results showed significantly increased effects of horticultural therapy on psychological indicators compared to a control group, but an insignificant effect on physiology indicators. The result of the subgroup analysis demonstrated that the stress-reducing effects of horticultural therapy were related to the characteristics of the population and indoor and virtual areas were the most effective setting for horticultural therapy. At the same time, a total duration of 100-500 minutes provided better effects of stress reduction.

Discussion

We also developed a theoretical framework based on a "Participants-Settings-Interventions" structure for horticulture therapy in terms of its stress-reduction effects, to provide a reference for future horticultural therapy activities.

Graphene-Based Sensor for the Detection of Cortisol for Stress Level Monitoring and Diagnostics

In this work, we study the sensing properties of multi-layer graphene combined with pyrrole in order to elaborate low-cost, high-sensitive material for cortisol detection. Graphene nanoplatelets and pyrrole were dispersed in a solution containing 1M HNO3 by using a powerful ultrasound probe for 10 min, then centrifuged for 30 min at 4000 rpm; polymerization was performed by cyclic voltammetry. The graphene-pyrrole composite was tested to ultra-low levels of cortisol in artificial saliva, consistent to the levels excreted in human salivary samples. The composite was further investigated by Raman spectroscopy and we modeled the interaction between the sensitive layer and cortisol using MarvinBeans software. It shows a good sensitivity for salivary values of cortisol cyclic voltammetry being able to detect a level down to 0.5 ng/mL cortisol.

Associations between mental and physical conditions in children and adolescents: An umbrella review

We mapped the evidence on the type and strength of associations between a broad range of mental and physical conditions in children and adolescents, by carrying out an umbrella review, i.e., a quantitative synthesis of previous systematic reviews and meta-analyses. We also assessed to which extent the links between mental and physical conditions vary across disorders or, by contrast, are transdiagnostic. Based on a pre-established protocol, we retained 45 systematic reviews/meta-analyses, encompassing around 12.5 million of participants. In analyses limited to the most rigorous estimates, we found evidence for the following associations: ADHD-asthma, ADHD-obesity, and depression-asthma. A transdiagnostic association was confirmed between asthma and anxiety/ASD/depression/bipolar disorder, between obesity and ADHD/ASD/depression, and between dermatitis and ASD/ADHD. We conclude that obesity and allergic conditions are likely to be associated with mental disorders in children and adolescents. Our results can help clinicians explore potential links between mental and physical conditions in children/adolescent and provide a road map for future studies aimed at shading light on the underlying factors.

Neuroscience and treatment of asthma, new therapeutic strategies and future aspects

AIMS

Asthma is an airway inflammatory disease that is affected by neurological and psychological factors. The aim of present review is to investigating the relationship between neural functions and neurobiological changes and asthma symptoms.

MAIN METHODS

The information in this article is provided from articles published in English and reputable database using appropriate keywords from 1970 to October 2020.

KEY FINDINGS

The symptoms of asthma such as cough, difficult breathing, and mucus secretion get worse when a person is suffering from stress, anxiety, and depression. The function of the insula, anterior cingulate cortex, and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis changes in response to stress and psychological disease; then the stress hormones are produced from neuroendocrine system, which leads to asthma exacerbation. The evidence represents that psychological therapies or neurological rehabilitation reduces the inflammation through modulating the activity of neurocircuitry and the function of brain centers involved in asthma. Moreover, the neurotrophins and neuropeptides are the key mediators in the neuro-immune interactions, which secrete from the airway nerves in response to brain signals, and they could be the target of many new therapies in asthma.

SIGNIFICANCE

This review provides an insight into the vital role of the central and peripheral nervous system in development and exacerbation of asthma and provides practical approaches and strategies on neural networks to improve the airway inflammation and asthma severity.

Association of stress management skills and stressful life events with allergy risk: a case-control study in southern China

BACKGROUND

Psychosocial stress and stressful life events are known to aggravate allergic diseases. Less is known about the impact of stress management skills on allergies. Here we sought to determine whether stress management skills are associated with the allergies and to assess the combined effects of stress management skills and stressful events on allergy risk.

METHODS

A survey on risk factors for self-reported allergic diseases was carried out among 28,144 southern Chinese people; 14 stressful life events and 8 stress management skills were retrospectively recorded in a case-control setting with multivariate logistic regression analysis. Multiplicative and additive interactions between stressful events and stress management skills were evaluated.

RESULTS

Stressful events significantly increased allergy risk. The odds ratio (OR) for allergies was 1.65 (95% confidence interval CI, 1.41-1.93) for those reporting one or two stressful events and 3.10 (95% CI, 2.55-3.79) for those reporting more than three stressful events compared to participants without stressful events. Stress management skills were adversely associated with allergic risk for people experiencing stressful events (OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.53-0.97) when adjusted demographically, particularly "concentrate on pleasant thoughts at bedtime" (OR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.51-0.89), "pace myself to prevent tiredness" (OR, 0.67; 95% CI, 0.54-0.83), "get enough sleep" (OR, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.32-0.72) and "take some time for relaxation each day" (OR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.37-0.80). But in people without stressful events, no association was observed. There was a significant linear trend for allergy risk from good stress management skills with no stressful events to poor stress management skills with stressful events (P < 0.001), with significant interaction in additive models (P = 0.006).

CONCLUSIONS

There are independent and antagonistic combined associations of stressful life events and stress management skills with allergy risk. The data supports the use of stress management skills in managing allergic disease among people with stressful life events.

Multidimensional Assessment of Asthma Identifies Clinically Relevant Phenotype Overlap: A Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND

Asthma is a heterogeneous disease with multiple phenotypes; however, the relevance of phenotype overlap remains largely unexplored.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the relationship between phenotype overlap and clinical and inflammatory profiles of asthma.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, adult participants with stable asthma (n = 522) underwent multidimensional assessments. The 10 most common phenotypes of asthma were defined and then classified into those commonly associated with Type (T) 2 or non-T2 inflammation. Furthermore, phenotype overlap scores (POS), representing the cumulative concomitant phenotypes, were used to analyze its association with clinical and inflammatory asthmatic profiles.

RESULTS

Among the 522 participants, 73.4% (n = 383) had phenotype overlap, and mixed T2 and non-T2 inflammation coexisted in 47.5% (n = 248). T2 POS was positively associated with eosinophils, IgE, and fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO), and negatively with Asthma Quality of Life Questionnaire (AQLQ), sputum neutrophils, IL-17A, IL-8, and TNF-α. Non-T2 POS was positively associated with Asthma Control Questionnaire, neutrophils and sputum IL-8, and negatively with AQLQ, forced expiratory volume in 1 s, blood eosinophils, IgE, and FeNO (all P < .05). Patients with phenotypes that are associated with mixed T2 and non-T2 inflammation had elevated T2 inflammation biomarkers but worse asthma control. Both T2 (adjusted β = -0.191, P = .035) and non-T2 (adjusted β = 0.310, P < .001) POS were significantly associated with severe exacerbations.

CONCLUSIONS

Phenotype overlap is extremely common in asthmatic patients and significantly associated with clinical and inflammatory profiles. Patients with phenotypes associated with mixed T2 and non-T2 inflammation might be unresponsive to medications owing to increased non-T2 inflammation. Multidimensional asthma assessment identifies clinically relevant phenotype overlap.

Chronic stress and asthma in adolescents

OBJECTIVE

First, to review and critically discuss published evidence on psychosocial stressors, stress, and asthma in adolescents and, then, discuss potential future directions in this field.

DATA SOURCES

The data source is the National Library of Medicine (PubMed database).

STUDY SELECTIONS

A literature search was conducted for human studies on stressors or stress and asthma between 2000 and 2020. Studies that were published in English, contained a full text, and included adolescents were considered for inclusion in this review.

RESULTS

Compared with the available body of evidence in children and adults, relatively few studies have been published in adolescents. Current evidence suggests that exposure to stressors (at the individual, family, and community levels) or stress (acute and chronic) is associated with asthma and worse asthma outcomes, but such evidence must be cautiously interpreted owing to limitations in the design or the analytical approach of the published studies.

CONCLUSION

Future large studies with a prospective design should determine whether and how stressors or stress causes or worsens asthma in adolescents. At present, clinicians should assess exposure to stressors (eg, violence or abuse) and screen for anxiety and depressive disorders when caring for adolescents with asthma in addition to providing referrals to social workers or mental health professionals when appropriate. Public health policies are needed to reduce psychosocial stressors, such as gun violence and racism, in adolescents.

Effects of Intranasal Epinephrine on Cerebrospinal Fluid Epinephrine Pharmacokinetics, Nasal Mucosa, Plasma Epinephrine Pharmacokinetics, and Cardiovascular Changes

PURPOSE

We aimed to assess intranasal (IN) epinephrine effects on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) absorption, nasal mucosa quality, plasma epinephrine pharmacokinetics (PK), and cardiovascular changes in dogs.

METHODS

CSF epinephrine concentration was measured and nasal mucosa quality was evaluated after IN epinephrine 4 mg and one or two 4 mg doses (21 min apart), respectively. Maximum plasma concentration [C_max], time to C_max [T_max], area under the curve from 0 to 120 min [AUC_0-120], and cardiovascular effects were evaluated after epinephrine IN (4 and 5 mg) and intramuscular (IM; 0.3 mg). Clinical observations were assessed.

RESULTS

After epinephrine IN, there were no changes in CSF epinephrine or nasal mucosa. C_max, T_max, and AUC_1-120 were similar following epinephrine IN and IM. Epinephrine IN versus IM increased plasma epinephrine at 1 min (mean ± SEM, 1.15 ± 0.48 for 4 mg IN and 1.7 ± 0.72 for 5 mg IN versus 0.47 ± 0.11 ng/mL for 0.3 mg IM). Epinephrine IN and IM produced similar heart rate and ECG results. Clinical observations included salivation and vomiting.

CONCLUSIONS

Epinephrine IN did not alter CSF epinephrine or nasal tissue and had similar cardiovascular effects as epinephrine IM. Epinephrine IN rapidly increased plasma epinephrine concentration versus epinephrine IM.

Chronic Stress and Glucocorticoid Receptor Resistance in Asthma

PURPOSE

Chronic and persistent exposure to negative stress can lead to adverse consequences on health. Particularly, psychosocial factors were found to increase the risk and outcome of respiratory diseases like asthma. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are the most efficient anti-inflammatory therapy for asthma. However, a significant proportion of patients don't respond adequately to GC administration. GC sensitivity is modulated by genetic and acquired disease-related factors. Additionally, it was proposed that endogenous corticosteroids may limit certain actions of synthetic GCs, contributing to insensitivity. Psychological and physiological stresses activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, increasing cortisol levels. Here, we review the mechanism involved in altered GC sensitivity in asthmatic patients under stressful situations. Strategies for modulation GC sensitivity and improving GC therapy are discussed.

METHODS

PubMed was searched for publications on psychological chronic stress and asthma, GC resistance in asthma, biological mechanisms for GC resistance, and drugs for steroid-resistant asthma, including highly potent GCs.

FINDINGS

GC resistance in patients with severe disease remains a major clinical problem. In asthma, experimental and clinical evidence suggests that chronic stress induces inflammatory changes, contributing to a worse GC response. GC resistant patients can be treated with other broad-spectrum anti-inflammatory drugs, but these generally have major side effects. Different mechanisms of GC resistance have been described and might be useful for developing new therapeutic strategies against it. Novel drugs, such as highly potent GCs, phosphoinositide 3-kinase-delta inhibitors that reestablish histone deacetylase-2 function, decrease of GC receptor phosphorylation by p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase inhibitors, or phosphatase activators, are currently in clinical development and might be combined with GC therapy in the future. Furthermore, microRNAs (small noncoding RNA molecules) operate as posttranscriptional regulators, providing another level of control of GC receptor levels. Empirical results allow postulating that the detection and study of microRNAs might be a promising approach to better characterize and treat asthmatic patients.

IMPLICATIONS

Many molecular and cellular pathobiological mechanisms are responsible of GC resistance. Therefore detecting specific biomarkers to help identify patients who would benefit from new therapies is crucial. Stress consitutes a negative aspect of current lifestyles that increase asthma morbidity and mortality. Adequate stress management could be an important and positive intervention.

"Shanghuo" increases disease susceptibility: Modern significance of an old TCM theory

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

"Shanghuo", a concept based on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) theory, describes a status of Yin-Yang imbalance when Yang overwhelms Yin. The imbalance of Yin-Yang resembles the breaking of homeostasis and manifests by the impaired physiological functions, which leads to the onset, recurrence, and progression of diseases. Since ancient times, Chinese Materia Medica (CMM), such as herbal tea, has been applied as a treatment for "Shanghuo".

AIM OF THE STUDY

This review is aimed to describe the origin of "Shanghuo" from the Yin-Yang theory in TCM, as well as explore the relevance and correlations between "Shanghuo" and diseases susceptibility from the perspective of modern medicine. We also propose several strategies from CMM to improve the status of "Shanghuo" for the purpose of treating diseases.

METHODS

Systematic research of articles with keywords including Shanghuo, Yin-Yang, emotional stress and disease susceptibility was done by using the literature databases (Web of Science, Google Scholar, PubMed, CNKI). Related books, PhD and master's dissertations were also researched. Full scientific plant names were validated by "The Plant List" (www.theplantlist.org).

RESULTS

To date, a large number of publications have reported research on sub-health status, but studies about the theory or intervention of "Shanghuo" are rarely found. The articles we reviewed indicate that accumulated emotional stress is critical for the cause of "Shanghuo". As a status similar to sub-health, "Shanghuo" is also manifested by impaired physiological functions and decreased nonspecific resistance, which increase susceptibility to various diseases. What's more, some studies highlight the importance of TCM treatment towards "Shanghuo" in maintaining normal physiological functions, such as immunity, lipid metabolism and ROS clearance.

CONCLUSIONS

Researches on "Shanghuo" and its mechanism are every rare currently and are in need of investigation in the future. Studies on disease susceptibility recently are mostly about susceptible genes that relate to a few parts of people, however, for most of the people, accumulated emotional stress or other stressors is accountable for the susceptibility of diseases. Given that emotional stress plays an important factor in the causation of "Shanghuo", we reviewed the articles about this relevance and discussed the connection of "Shanghuo" with disease susceptibility in a novel perspective. In addition, we have reviewed the disease susceptibility model of restraint stress from its biochemical manifestation to application in CMM assessment. Although it would be a breakthrough in evaluating CMM efficacy of attenuating disease-susceptibility, understanding the comprehensive theory and establishing more models of "Shanghuo" would be required in further investigation.

Immune-Related Comorbidities in Childhood-Onset Obsessive Compulsive Disorder: Lifetime Prevalence in the Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Collaborative Genetics Association Study

Objective: To evaluate the lifetime prevalence of infectious, inflammatory, and autoimmune disorders in a multisite study of probands with childhood-onset obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and their first-degree relatives. Methods: Medical questionnaires were completed by 1401 probands and 1045 first-degree relatives in the OCD Collaborative Genetics Association Study. Lifetime prevalence of immune-related diseases was compared with the highest available population estimate and reported as a point estimate with 95% adjusted Wald interval. Worst-episode OCD severity and symptom dimensions were assessed with the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) and Symptom Checklist (YBOCS-CL). Results: Probands reported higher-than-expected prevalence of scarlet fever (4.0 [3.1-5.2]% vs. 1.0%-2.0%, z = 1.491, p < 0.001, n = 1389), encephalitis or meningitis (1.4 [0.9-2.1]% vs. 0.1%-0.4%, z = 5.913, p < 0.001, n = 1393), rheumatoid arthritis (1.1 [0.6-2.0]% vs. 0.2%-0.4%, z = 3.416, p < 0.001, n = 949) and rheumatic fever (0.6 [0.3-1.2]% vs. 0.1%-0.2%, z = 3.338, p < 0.001, n = 1390), but not systemic lupus erythematosus, diabetes, asthma, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, or inflammatory bowel disease. First-degree relatives reported similarly elevated rates of scarlet fever, rheumatic fever, and encephalitis or meningitis independent of OCD status. There was no association between worst-episode severity and immune-related comorbidities, although probands reporting frequent ear or throat infections had increased severity of cleaning-/contamination-related symptoms (mean factor score 2.5 ± 0.9 vs. 2.3 ± 1.0, t = 3.183, p = 0.002, n = 822). Conclusion: These data suggest high rates of streptococcal-related and other immune-mediated diseases in patients with childhood-onset OCD and are consistent with epidemiological studies in adults noting familial clustering. Limitations include potential reporting bias and absence of a control group, underscoring the need for further prospective studies characterizing medical and psychiatric disease clusters and their interactions in children. Such studies may ultimately improve our understanding of OCD pathogenesis and aid in the development of adjunctive immune-modulating therapeutic strategies.

Activation of the kynurenine pathway and mitochondrial respiration to face allostatic load in a double-hit model of stress

Allostasis is the process by which the body's physiological systems adapt to environmental changes. Chronic stress increases the allostatic load to the body, producing wear and tear that could, over time, become pathological. In this study, young adult male Wistar Kyoto rats were exposed to an unpredictable chronic mild stress (uCMS) protocol to increase allostatic load. First, physiological systems which may be affected by extended uCMS exposure were assessed. Secondly, 5 weeks of uCMS were used to investigate early adaptations in the previously selected systems. Adverse experiences during developmentally sensitive periods like adolescence are known to severely alter the individual stress vulnerability with long-lasting effects. To elucidate how early life adversity impacts stress reactivity in adulthood, an additional group with juvenile single-housing (JSH) prior to uCMS was included in the second cohort. The aim of this work was to assess the impact of chronic stress with or without adversity during adolescence on two domains known to be impacted in numerous stress-related disorders: mitochondrial energy metabolism and the immune system. Both, uCMS and adolescence stress increased kynurenine and kynurenic acid in plasma, suggesting a protective, anti-oxidant response from the kynurenine pathway. Furthermore, uCMS resulted in a down-regulation of immediate early gene expression in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus, while only rats with the double-hit of adolescent stress and uCMS demonstrated increased mitochondrial activity in the hippocampus. These results suggest that early life adversity may impact on allostatic load by increasing energetic requirements in the brain.

Type A behavior pattern, risk propensity and empathy in young professionally active patients with bronchial asthma

Introduction

Type A behavior pattern is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. It is a learned way to respond to stress. The capability of empathy and impulsiveness is an important element of functioning of the human being.

Aim

To assess the degree of bronchial asthma control in the context of the intensity of type A pattern of behavior, Impulsivity, Risk Propensity and Empathy.

Material and methods

The study involved examination of 150 subjects, including 111 with asthma of different degrees of control, all of whom were young, professionally active people. Two validated questionnaires (IVE Impulsivity Questionnaire and Type A Scale) were used to assess the correlation between the degrees of asthma control and type A behavior pattern, Empathy, Impulsivity and Risk Propensity.

Results

The level of type A behavior pattern was significantly higher in the subjects with poorly controlled asthma as compared with those with partially controlled and well-controlled asthma and with healthy subjects. Impulsivity and Risk Propensity were higher in the group with poorly controlled asthma compared with the other analyzed groups. Empathy was lower in the group with poorly controlled asthma than in the other analyzed groups. There was no difference in the intensity of the analyzed mental variables between persons with partially controlled and well-controlled asthma and people without bronchial asthma.

Conclusions

Poor control of asthma may be associated with type A behavior pattern and high impulsivity and risk propensity.