Interindividual differences in stress sensitivity: basal and stress-induced cortisol levels differentially predict neural vigilance processing under stress

The impact of mental health conditions on clinical and functional outcomes after shoulder arthroplasty: a systematic review

Background

Shoulder arthroplasty (SA) has been shown to improve quality of life, though outcomes may vary between individuals. Multiple factors may affect outcomes, including preoperative mental health conditions (MHCs). The goal of this systematic review was to evaluate the clinical and functional outcomes after SA in patients with MHC compared to patients without MHC.

Methods

This systematic review was performed in adherence to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines outlined by Cochrane Collaboration. A search of PubMed, the Medline Library, and EMBASE was conducted from inception until September 2023 to obtain studies reporting outcomes after total shoulder arthroplasty and reverse total shoulder arthroplasty in patients with and without MHC. Study characteristics and information on clinical and functional outcomes were collected. All included studies were case-control studies. The methodological quality of the included primary studies was appraised using the methodological index for nonrandomized studies scoring.

Results

Eleven articles published between 2016 and 2023 met inclusion criteria. In total, 49,187 patients, 49,289 shoulders, and five different MHC were included. 8134 patients in the cohort had a diagnosed MHC. The mean patient age was 67.8 years (range, 63.5-71.6 years), and 52.6% of the patients were female. The mean follow-up time was 35.5 months (range, 16.2-58.3 months). Reverse total shoulder arthroplasty was the most common type of procedure (25,543 shoulders, 51.8%). Depression and anxiety were the most reported psychiatric diagnoses (7990 patients, 98.2%). Patients with versus without MHC reported mean improvements of 38 and 42 in American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons shoulder score and mean Visual Analog Scale pain improvements of 4.7 and 4.9, respectively. Mean complication rates of 31.4% and 14.2% were observed in patients with versus without MHC, respectively. The most prevalent surgical complication in patients with MHC was infection (1.8%), followed by prosthetic complication (1.7%), and adhesive capsulitis (1.6%).

Conclusions

Patients with MHC may have lower preoperative range of motion, worse postoperative shoulder function, and higher postoperative pain levels than patients without MHC. Patients with MHC demonstrated improvements in range of motion and functional outcomes after SA but had higher reported complication and revision rates when compared to patients without MHC. Depression and anxiety were the leading conditions correlated with lower outcomes in patients with MHC after SA. Preoperative physical therapy, mental health counseling, and expectation setting may help these patients reach the maximal achievable benefit from SA.

When virtual reality becomes psychoneuroendocrine reality: A stress(or) review

This review article was awarded the Dirk Hellhammer award from ISPNE in 2023. It explores the dynamic relationship between stressors and stress from a historical view as well as a vision towards the future of stress research via virtual reality (VR). We introduce the concept of a "syncytium," a permeable boundary that blurs the distinction between stress and stressor, in order to understand why the field of stress biology continues to inadequately measure stress alone as a proxy for the force of external stressors. Using Virtual Reality (VR) as an illustrative example to explicate the black box of stressors, we examine the distinction between 'immersion' and 'presence' as analogous terms for stressor and stress, respectively. We argue that the conventional psychological approaches to stress measurement and appraisal theory unfortunately fall short in quantifying the force of the stressor, leading to reverse causality fallacies. Further, the concept of affordances is introduced as an ecological or holistic tool to measure and design a stressor's force, bridging the gap between the external environment and an individual's physiological response to stress. Affordances also serve to ameliorate shortcomings in stress appraisal by integrating ecological interdependencies. By combining VR and psychobiological measures, this paper aims to unravel the complexity of the stressor-stress syncytium, highlighting the necessity of assessing both the internal and external facets to gain a holistic understanding of stress physiology and shift away from reverse causality reasoning. We find that the utility of VR extends beyond presence to include affordance-based measures of immersion, which can effectively model stressor force. Future research should prioritize the development of tools that can measure both immersion and presence, thereby providing a more comprehensive understanding of how external stressors interact with individual psychological states.

Heightened lateral habenula activity during stress produces brainwide and behavioral substrates of susceptibility

Some individuals are susceptible to the experience of chronic stress and others are more resilient. While many brain regions implicated in learning are dysregulated after stress, little is known about whether and how neural teaching signals during stress differ between susceptible and resilient individuals. Here, we seek to determine if activity in the lateral habenula (LHb), which encodes a negative teaching signal, differs between susceptible and resilient mice during stress to produce different outcomes. After, but not before, chronic social defeat stress (CSDS), the LHb is active when susceptible mice are in the proximity of the aggressor strain. During stress itself, LHb activity is higher in susceptible mice during aggressor proximity, and activation of the LHb during stress biases mice towards susceptibility. This manipulation generates a persistent and widespread increase in the balance of subcortical versus cortical activity in susceptible mice. Taken together, our results indicate that heightened activity in the LHb during stress produces lasting brainwide and behavioral substrates of susceptibility.

Relationship between heart rate variability and differential patterns of cortisol response to acute stressors in mid-life adults: A data-driven investigation

Cortisol and heart rate variability (HRV) are well-established biomarkers of the human stress response system. While a relationship between cortisol and HRV is assumed, few studies have found evidence of their correlation within single study designs. One complication for isolating such a relationship may lie in individual variability in the cortisol response to stress such that atypical cortisol responding (i.e., elevated or blunted) occurs. To-date, studies on the cortisol response have employed traditional mean-difference-based approaches to examine average magnitude change in cortisol over time. Alternatively, data-driven trajectory modelling, such as latent growth mixture modelling, may be advantageous for quantifying cortisol based on patterns of response over time. Latent growth mixture modelling was used in N = 386 adults to identify subgroups based on trajectories of cortisol responses to stress. The relationship between cortisol and HRV was tested within subgroups. Results revealed a 'prototypical' subgroup characterised by expected rise and fall in cortisol response to stress (n = 309), a 'decline' subgroup (n = 28) that declined in cortisol after stress, and a 'rise' subgroup (n = 49) that increased in cortisol after stress. Within the 'prototypical' subgroup, greater HRV during stress was associated with decline in cortisol after stress from its maximum (r (306) = 0.19, p < 0.001). This relationship failed to emerge in the 'decline' and 'rise' subgroups (p > 0.271). Results document different patterns of cortisol response to stress; among those who exhibit a 'prototypical' response, changes in HRV during stress are related to changes in cortisol after stress.

Adolescent stress accelerates postpartum novelty recognition impairment in 5xFAD mice

Pregnancy and the postpartum period induce physiological changes that can influence women's cognitive functions. Alzheimer's disease (AD) has a higher prevalence in women and is exacerbated by early life stress. In the present study, we found that late adolescent social isolation combined with the experience of pregnancy and delivery accelerates the onset of cognitive deficits in 5xFAD dams, particularly affecting their ability to recognize novelty. These cognitive deficits manifested as early as 16 weeks, earlier than the usual timeline for these mice, and were closely associated with increased levels of corticosterone, suggesting dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Notably, the presence of β-amyloid plaques in brain regions associated with novelty recognition did not significantly contribute to these deficits. This highlights the potential role of stress and HPA axis dysregulation in the development of cognitive impairments related to AD, and underscores the need for further investigation.

The effect of perceived stress on social isolation in young and middle-aged maintenance haemodialysis patients: A polynomial regression and response surface analysis

Patients on maintenance haemodialysis (MHD) face social isolation due to the far-reaching effects of their disease and treatment. Based on the Transactional Model of Stress and Coping, we analysed the relationship between perceived stress and social isolation in patients, and the mediating role of internal health-related locus of control (IHLC) from the perspective of co-existence of perceived helplessness (HEL) and perceived self-efficacy (SEL). We used structured questionnaires to investigate 332 cases of young and middle-aged MHD patients in four tertiary hospitals in Guangdong, China. Polynomial regression and response surface analysis were conducted, along with tests of mediating effects on the data. The research was based on STROBE guidelines. The results showed that perceived stress is significantly and positively associated with social isolation. When the HEL and SEL of perceived stress were congruent, the joint effect of the two was in a positive curvilinear relationship to social isolation, when the two were incongruent, the risk of social isolation was lower for "low HEL-high SEL" patients compared to the "high HEL-low SEL" combination. The more congruent in HEL -SEL, the lower the risk of social isolation for the patients, with the IHLC playing a mediating role in this association. This study reveals that the coexistence of perceived stress's HEL and SEL affects social isolation through congruent and incongruent matching mechanism, providing additional explanations for the mechanism of occurrence of patients' social isolation.

Inter- and transgenerational heritability of preconception chronic stress or alcohol exposure: Translational outcomes in brain and behavior

Chronic stress and alcohol (ethanol) use are highly interrelated and can change an individual's behavior through molecular adaptations that do not change the DNA sequence, but instead change gene expression. A recent wealth of research has found that these nongenomic changes can be transmitted across generations, which could partially account for the "missing heritability" observed in genome-wide association studies of alcohol use disorder and other stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders. In this review, we summarize the molecular and behavioral outcomes of nongenomic inheritance of chronic stress and ethanol exposure and the germline mechanisms that could give rise to this heritability. In doing so, we outline the need for further research to: (1) Investigate individual germline mechanisms of paternal, maternal, and biparental nongenomic chronic stress- and ethanol-related inheritance; (2) Synthesize and dissect cross-generational chronic stress and ethanol exposure; (3) Determine cross-generational molecular outcomes of preconception ethanol exposure that contribute to alcohol-related disease risk, using cancer as an example. A detailed understanding of the cross-generational nongenomic effects of stress and/or ethanol will yield novel insight into the impact of ancestral perturbations on disease risk across generations and uncover actionable targets to improve human health.

Emotional labor as emotion regulation investigated with ecological momentary assessment - a scoping review

BACKGROUND

This scoping review's aim is to provide a comprehensive overview of ecological momentary assessment (EMA)- based research on emotional labor (EL) as emotion regulation (ER). This includes an examination of the theoretical foundation this research builds on, how the hypothesized relationships are investigated using EMA methods as well as the studies' findings themselves. We built on the work of Grandey and Melloy (J Occup Health Psychol 22:407-22, 2004), who broadly distinguished between the two regulatory strategies of deep acting (DA) and surface acting (SA), embedded in a hierarchical model of emotional labor, as a guiding theory for structuring this review.

METHODS

To be included, studies had to use EMA to measure SA or DA, with no restrictions regarding population and date of publication. The electronic databases CINAHL, PsycArticles, PsycINFO, PSYNDEX, Embase, PubMed, and Web of Science were searched. Studies were included if they met the above criteria and were written in English or German. Out of 237 publications, 12 were chosen for this review.

RESULTS

All studies were based on emotional labor theories, with Arlie Hochschild's theory being the most popular, followed by Alicia Grandey's emotional labor theory and its modifications (Grandey AA. Emotion Regulation in the Workplace: A New Way to Conceptualize Emotional Labor; Grandey AA. When "the show must go on": Surface acting and deep acting as determinants of emotional exhaustion and peer-rated service delivery. 2003). The methodological quality of the studies varied greatly. The results of the studies indicate that SA is influenced by negative events, trait SA, service innovation and certain emotions, while DA is influenced by positive events and emotional intelligence. Emotional labor benefits the organization, e.g., by improving customer conflict handling, but also causes harm by increasing employee withdrawal behavior. For the employee, emotional labor results in more harm than benefits.

CONCLUSIONS

The research area is still in its early stages and the findings are mostly consistent, but the small number of studies needs to be replicated to increase the reliability of the results. The lack of evidence for ertain hypotheses highlights the presence of unresolved relationships that require further exploration. We are only at the beginning of investigating emotional labor using ecological momentary assessment, and conducting more high-quality studies will significantly enhance our comprehension of emotional labor.

Chronic stress from adolescence to adulthood increases adiposity and anxiety in rats with decreased expression of Krtcap3

We previously identified Keratinocyte-associated protein 3, Krtcap3, as a novel adiposity gene, but subsequently found that its impact on adiposity may depend on environmental stress. To more thoroughly understand the connection between Krtcap3, adiposity, and stress, we exposed wild-type (WT) and Krtcap3 knock-out (KO) rats to chronic stress then measured adiposity and behavioral outcomes. We found that KO rats displayed lower basal stress than WT rats under control conditions and exhibited metabolic and behavioral responses to chronic stress exposure. Specifically, stress-exposed KO rats gained more weight, consumed more food when socially isolated, and displayed more anxiety-like behaviors relative to control KO rats. Meanwhile, there were minimal differences between control and stressed WT rats. At study conclusion stress-exposed KO rats had increased corticosterone (CORT) relative to control KO rats with no differences between WT rats. In addition, KO rats, independent of prior stress exposure, had an increased CORT response to removal of their cage-mate (psychosocial stress), which was only seen in WT rats when exposed to chronic stress. Finally, we found differences in expression of the glucocorticoid receptor, Nr3c1, in the pituitary and colon between control and stress-exposed KO rats that were not present in WT rats. These data support that Krtcap3 expression affects stress response, potentially via interactions with Nr3c1, with downstream effects on adiposity and behavior. Future work is necessary to more thoroughly understand the role of Krtcap3 in the stress response.

Functional MRI Techniques Suggesting that the Stress System Interacts with Three Large Scale Core Brain Networks to Help Coordinate the Adaptive Response: A Systematic Review

OBJECTIVE

Synthesis of functional MRI (fMRI) and functional connectivity (FC) analysis data on human stress system (SS) function, as it relates to the dynamic function of the Salience (SN), Default Mode (DMN) and Central Executive (CEN) networks.

METHODS

Systematic search of Medline, Scopus, Clinical Trials.gov, and Google Scholar databases of studies published prior to September 2022 resulted in 28 full-text articles included for qualitative synthesis.

RESULTS

Acute stress changes the states of intra-/inter- neural network FCs and activities from those of resting, low arousal state in the SN, DMN and CEN, during which intra- and inter-network FCs and activities of all three networks are low. SS activation is positively linked to the activity of the SN and negatively to that of the DMN, while, in parallel, it is associated with an initial decrease and a subsequent increase of the intra- network FC and activity of the CEN. The FC between the DMN and the CEN increases, while those between the SN and the CEN decrease, allowing time for frontal lobe strategy input and "proper" CEN activity and task decision. SN activation is linked to sensory hypersensitivity, "impaired" memory, and a switch from serial to parallel processing, while trait mindfulness is associated with FC changes promoting CEN activity and producing a "task-ready state".

CONCLUSION

SS activation is tightly connected to that of the SN, with stress hormones likely potentiating the intra-network FC of the latter, attenuating that of the DMN, and causing a biphasic suppression- to-activation response of the CEN, all adaptive changes favoring proper decisions and survival.

Changes in environmental stress over COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to failure to replicate adiposity phenotype associated with Krtcap3

We previously identified keratinocyte-associated protein 3, Krtcap3, as an obesity-related gene in female rats where a whole body Krtcap3 knockout (KO) led to increased adiposity compared to wild-type (WT) controls when fed a high-fat diet (HFD). We sought to replicate this work to better understand the function of Krtcap3 but were unable to reproduce the adiposity phenotype. In the current work, WT female rats ate more compared to WT in the prior study, with corresponding increases in body weight and fat mass, while there were no changes in these measures in KO females between the studies. The prior study was conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic, while the current study started after initial lockdown orders and was completed during the pandemic in a generally less stressful environment. We hypothesize that the environmental changes impacted stress levels and may explain the failure to replicate our results. Analysis of corticosterone (CORT) at euthanasia showed a significant study-by-genotype interaction where WT had significantly higher CORT relative to KO in study 1, with no differences in study 2. These data suggest that decreasing Krtcap3 expression may alter the environmental stress response to influence adiposity. We also found that KO rats in both studies, but not WT, experienced a dramatic increase in CORT after their cage mate was removed, suggesting a separate connection to social behavioral stress. Future work is necessary to confirm and elucidate the finer mechanisms of these relationships, but these data indicate the possibility of Krtcap3 as a novel stress gene.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Obesity is linked to both genetics and environmental factors such as stress. Krtcap3 has previously been identified as a gene associated with adiposity, and our work here demonstrates that environmental stress may influence the role of Krtcap3 on both food intake and adiposity. Obesity is strongly influenced by stress in humans, so the identification of novel genes that link stress and obesity will greatly advance our understanding of the disease.

The moderating role of adrenocortical reactivity in the associations between interparental conflict, emotional reactivity, and school adjustment

This study tested whether the associations between interparental conflict, children's emotional reactivity, and school adjustment were moderated by children's cortisol reactivity in a sample of young children (N = 243; mean age = 4.6 years at Wave 1; 56% female, 44% male) and their parents. Using a longitudinal, autoregressive design, observational assessments of children's emotional reactivity at Wave 2 mediated the relationship between an observational measure of Wave 1 conflict between parents and teacher's report of children's school adjustment at Wave 3. However, children's cortisol reactivity to parent conflict at Wave 1 moderated the first link, such that emotional reactivity operated as a mediator for children with heightened cortisol reactivity but not children with low cortisol reactivity. Moderation was expressed in a "for better" or "for worse" form hypothesized by biological sensitivity to context theory. Thus, children with high cortisol reactivity experienced greater emotional reactivity than their peers when faced with more destructive conflict but also lower emotional reactivity when exposed to more constructive interparental conflict. Results are discussed as to how they advance emotional security and biological sensitivity to context theories.

Integrating the social environment with an equity perspective into the exposome paradigm: A new conceptual framework of the Social Exposome

The importance of the social environment and social inequalities in disease etiology is well-known due to the profound research and conceptual framework on social determinants of health. For a long period, in exposome research with its classical orientation towards detrimental health effects of biological, chemical, and physical exposures, this knowledge remained underrepresented. But currently it gains great awareness and calls for innovations in rethinking the role of social environmental health determinants. To fill this gap that exists in terms of the social domain within exposome research, we propose a novel conceptual framework of the Social Exposome, to integrate the social environment in conjunction with the physical environment into the exposome concept. The iterative development process of the Social Exposome was based on a systematic compilation of social exposures in order to achieve a holistic portrayal of the human social environment - including social, psychosocial, socioeconomic, sociodemographic, local, regional, and cultural aspects, at individual and contextual levels. In order to move the Social Exposome beyond a mere compilation of exposures, three core principles are emphasized that underly the interplay of the multitude of exposures: Multidimensionality, Reciprocity, and Timing and continuity. The key focus of the conceptual framework of the Social Exposome is on understanding the underlying mechanisms that translate social exposures into health outcomes. In particular, insights from research on health equity and environmental justice have been incorporated to uncover how social inequalities in health emerge, are maintained, and systematically drive health outcomes. Three transmission pathways are presented: Embodiment, Resilience and Susceptibility or Vulnerability, and Empowerment. The Social Exposome conceptual framework may serve as a strategic map for, both, research and intervention planning, aiming to further explore the impact of the complex social environment and to alter transmission pathways to minimize health risks and health inequalities and to foster equity in health.

Changes in Environmental Stress over COVID-19 Pandemic Likely Contributed to Failure to Replicate Adiposity Phenotype Associated with Krtcap3

We previously identified Keratinocyte-associated protein 3, Krtcap3, as an obesity-related gene in female rats where a whole-body Krtcap3 knock-out (KO) led to increased adiposity compared to wild-type (WT) controls when fed a high-fat diet (HFD). We sought to replicate this work to better understand the function of Krtcap3 but were unable to reproduce the adiposity phenotype. In the current work, WT female rats ate more compared to WT in the prior study, with corresponding increases in body weight and fat mass, while there were no changes in these measures in KO females between the studies. The prior study was conducted before the COVID-19 pandemic, while the current study started after initial lock-down orders and was completed during the pandemic with a generally less stressful environment. We hypothesize that the environmental changes impacted stress levels and may explain the failure to replicate our results. Analysis of corticosterone (CORT) at euthanasia showed a significant study by genotype interaction where WT had significantly higher CORT relative to KO in Study 1, with no differences in Study 2. These data suggest that decreasing Krtcap3 expression may alter the environmental stress response to influence adiposity. We also found that KO rats in both studies, but not WT, experienced a dramatic increase in CORT after their cage mate was removed, suggesting a separate connection to social behavioral stress. Future work is necessary to confirm and elucidate the finer mechanisms of these relationships, but these data indicate the possibility of Krtcap3 as a novel stress gene.

Poststress social isolation exerts anxiolytic effects by activating the ventral dentate gyrus

After aversive stress, people either choose to return to their previously familiar social environment or tend to adopt temporary social withdrawal to buffer negative emotions. However, which behavior intervention is more appropriate and when remain elusive. Here, we unexpectedly found that stressed mice experiencing social isolation exhibited less anxiety than those experiencing social contact. Within the first 24 h after returning to their previous social environment, mice experienced acute restraint stress (ARS) displayed low social interest but simultaneously received excessive social disturbance from their cage mates, indicating a critical time window for social isolation to balance the conflict. To screen brain regions that were differentially activated between the poststress social isolation and poststress social contact groups, we performed ΔFosB immunostaining and found that ΔFosB + signals were remarkably increased in the vDG of poststress social isolation group compared with poststress social contact group. There were no significant differences between the two groups in the other anxiety- and social-related brain regions, such as prelimbic cortex, infralimbic cortex, nucleus accumbens, etc. These data indicate that vDG is closely related to the differential phenotypes between the poststress social isolation and poststress social contact groups. Electrophysiological recording, further, revealed a higher activity of vDG in the poststress social isolation group than the poststress social contact group. Chemogenetically inhibiting vDG excitatory neurons within the first 24 h after ARS completely abolished the anxiolytic effects of poststress social isolation, while stimulating vDG excitatory neurons remarkably reduced anxiety-like behaviors in the poststress social contact group. Together, these data suggest that the activity of vDG excitatory neurons is essential and sufficient to govern the anxiolytic effect of poststress social isolation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to uncover a beneficial role of temporal social isolation in acute stress-induced anxiety. In addition to the critical 24-h time window, activation of vDG is crucial for ameliorating anxiety through poststress social isolation.

Additive Effects of Stress and Alcohol Exposure on Accelerated Epigenetic Aging in Alcohol Use Disorder

BACKGROUND

Stress contributes to premature aging and susceptibility to alcohol use disorder (AUD), and AUD itself is a factor in premature aging; however, the interrelationships of stress, AUD, and premature aging are poorly understood.

METHODS

We constructed a composite score of stress from 13 stress-related outcomes in a discovery cohort of 317 individuals with AUD and control subjects. We then developed a novel methylation score of stress (MS stress) as a proxy of composite score of stress comprising 211 CpGs selected using a penalized regression model. The effects of MS stress on health outcomes and epigenetic aging were assessed in a sample of 615 patients with AUD and control subjects using epigenetic clocks and DNA methylation-based telomere length. Statistical analysis with an additive model using MS stress and a MS for alcohol consumption (MS alcohol) was conducted. Results were replicated in 2 independent cohorts (Generation Scotland, N = 7028 and the Grady Trauma Project, N = 795).

RESULTS

Composite score of stress and MS stress were strongly associated with heavy alcohol consumption, trauma experience, epigenetic age acceleration (EAA), and shortened DNA methylation-based telomere length in AUD. Together, MS stress and MS alcohol additively showed strong stepwise increases in EAA. Replication analyses showed robust association between MS stress and EAA in the Generation Scotland and Grady Trauma Project cohorts.

CONCLUSIONS

A methylation-derived score tracking stress exposure is associated with various stress-related phenotypes and EAA. Stress and alcohol have additive effects on aging, offering new insights into the pathophysiology of premature aging in AUD and, potentially, other aspects of gene dysregulation in this disorder.

Exposure to antenatal corticosteroids and infant cortisol regulation

Administration of antenatal corticosteroids (AC) is the standard of care during pregnancy for women who are at risk of early delivery. Evidence indicates that AC improve survival and reduce morbidity for preterm infants. However, research suggests that infants whose mothers receive AC have an altered hypothalamic-pituitary-axis (HPA) response to stressors in early life. Results are mixed regarding the nature of these effects, with studies showing both suppressed and augmented HPA activity. In addition, research is very limited beyond the 4th month of life. The purpose of this study was to determine if AC exposure was associated with infant cortisol levels in a resting state or in response to a stressor at 1, 6 and 12 months postnatal. We also evaluated the moderating role of preterm birth in this association. 181 women and their infants participated in the study. Women were recruited during the 3rd trimester of pregnancy; at this time, they completed the Perceived Stress Scale and provided 8 salivary samples over a 2-day period for cortisol assay. They provided these data again at 6 and 12 months postnatal. At 1, 6, and 12 months postnatal, salivary samples were collected from infants to examine their cortisol levels before and after participation in a 'stressor protocol'. Data were extracted from the medical record on AC exposure, gestational age, maternal obstetric risk, and neonatal morbidity. Mixed effects multilevel regression modeling was used to examine the aims. Infants whose mothers received AC had significantly lower resting state (B = -2.47, CI: -3.691, -0.0484) and post-stressor (B = -2.51, CI: -4.283, -0.4276) cortisol levels across the first year of life than infants whose mothers did not receive AC. There was no moderating effect of preterm birth on the relationship between AC exposure and cortisol. Results indicate a state of dampened HPA activation and cortisol hypo-arousal that persists across the first year of life among infants who were exposed to corticosteroids in utero. Further research is needed to examine mechanisms responsible for any alterations that occur during development of the fetal HPA axis, including epigenetic and biochemical factors that control hormonal secretion, negative feedback, and glucocorticoid receptor function throughout the HPA axis. Findings warrant careful consideration by obstetric clinicians of the benefits and risks of prescribing AC.

Prospective longitudinal associations between harsh parenting and corticolimbic function during adolescence

Childhood adversity is thought to undermine youth socioemotional development via altered neural function within regions that support emotion processing. These effects are hypothesized to be developmentally specific, with adversity in early childhood sculpting subcortical structures (e.g., amygdala) and adversity during adolescence impacting later-developing structures (e.g., prefrontal cortex; PFC). However, little work has tested these theories directly in humans. Using prospectively collected longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (FFCWS) (N = 4,144) and neuroimaging data from a subsample of families recruited in adolescence (N = 162), the current study investigated the trajectory of harsh parenting across childhood (i.e., ages 3 to 9) and how initial levels versus changes in harsh parenting across childhood were associated with corticolimbic activation and connectivity during socioemotional processing. Harsh parenting in early childhood (indexed by the intercept term from a linear growth curve model) was associated with less amygdala, but not PFC, reactivity to angry facial expressions. In contrast, change in harsh parenting across childhood (indexed by the slope term) was associated with less PFC, but not amygdala, activation to angry faces. Increases in, but not initial levels of, harsh parenting were also associated with stronger positive amygdala-PFC connectivity during angry face processing.

A latent profile analysis of the COVID-19 Stressors Scale

OBJECTIVE

Research from the early months of the SARS-Cov-2 (COVID-19) pandemic identifies many COVID-related stressors, including fears of infection, disruptions to work/learning and daily self-care routines, and lack of access to reliable information and resources. Measuring the complex, ongoing nature of the stressors related to COVID-19 is of great practical utility, as is investigating how people may differently respond to stressors. The objective of the present study was to identify the possible profiles of COVID-19-related stressors using a recently developed measure, the COVID-19 Stressors Scale.

METHOD

The present study sampled individuals from Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk; n = 1,530) and examined the COVID-19 Stressors Scale with a latent profile analysis.

RESULTS

Using a latent profile analysis, three profiles of COVID-19-related stressors were identified, Moderate Disruption Distress, High Disruption Distress, and Identity and Role Strain.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the results of the study, the authors encourage researchers to differentiate types of stressors profiles of individual experiences COVID-19 or future pandemics. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Acute stress increases left hemispheric activity measured via changes in frontal alpha asymmetries

Frontal EEG alpha band asymmetries have been linked to affective processing in healthy individuals and affective disorders. As stress provides a strong source of negative affect, the present study investigated how acute stress affects frontal EEG alpha asymmetries. Continuous EEG data were acquired from 51 healthy adult participants during stress induction with the Trier Social Stress Test. EEG data were also collected during a non-stressful control condition. Furthermore, EEG resting state data were acquired after both conditions. Under stress, participants showed stronger left hemispheric activation over frontal electrodes as well as reduced left-hemispheric activation over occipital electrodes compared to the control condition. Our results are in line with predictions of the asymmetric inhibition model which postulates that the left prefrontal cortex inhibits negative distractors. Moreover, the results support the capability model of emotional regulation which states that frontal asymmetries during emotional challenge are more pronounced compared to asymmetries during rest.

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EEG recording during social stress induction

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Stronger left hemispheric frontal activation during emotional challenge

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No stress-related changes in resting state EEG after stress induction

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Support for asymmetric inhibition and the capability model of emotional regulation

The Molecular Basis of Resilience: A Narrative Review

Resilience refers to the adaptability of a person - an ability to "bounce-back" from stressors. We question if resilience can be strengthened, potentially to decrease the risk of stress-related disorders. Unfortunately, the molecular origins of resilience are complicated and not yet well understood. In this review, we examine the various physiological biomarkers of resilience, including the associated genes, epigenetic changes, and protein biomarkers associated with resilient phenotypes. In addition to assessing biomarkers that may indicate higher levels of resilience, we also review at length the many biomarkers that confer lower levels of resilience and may lead to disorders of low resilience, such as anxiety and depression. This large and encompassing review may help to identify the possible therapeutic targets of resilience. Hopefully these studies will lead to a future where stress-related disorders can be prevented, rather than treated.

Altered relationship between cortisol response to social stress and mediotemporal function during fear processing in people at clinical high risk for psychosis: a preliminary report

Evidence suggests that people at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis (CHR) have a blunted cortisol response to stress and altered mediotemporal activation during fear processing, which may be neuroendocrine-neuronal signatures of maladaptive threat responses. However, whether these facets are associated with each other and how this relationship is affected by cannabidiol treatment is unknown. We examined the relationship between cortisol response to social stress and mediotemporal function during fear processing in healthy people and in CHR patients. In exploratory analyses, we investigated whether treatment with cannabidiol in CHR individuals could normalise any putative alterations in cortisol-mediotemporal coupling. 33 CHR patients were randomised to 600 mg cannabidiol or placebo treatment. Healthy controls (n = 19) did not receive any drug. Mediotemporal function was assessed using a fearful face-processing functional magnetic resonance imaging paradigm. Serum cortisol and anxiety were measured immediately following the Trier Social Stress Test. The relationship between cortisol and mediotemporal blood-oxygen-level-dependent haemodynamic response was investigated using linear regression. In healthy controls, there was a significant negative relationship between cortisol and parahippocampal activation (p = 0.023), such that the higher the cortisol levels induced by social stress, the lower the parahippocampal activation (greater deactivation) during fear processing. This relationship differed significantly between the control and placebo groups (p = 0.033), but not between the placebo and cannabidiol groups (p = 0.67). Our preliminary findings suggest that the parahippocampal response to fear processing may be associated with the neuroendocrine (cortisol) response to experimentally induced social stress, and that this relationship may be altered in patients at clinical high risk for psychosis.

Cortisol and C-Reactive Protein Vary During Sleep Loss and Recovery but Are Not Markers of Neurobehavioral Resilience

Cortisol and C-reactive protein (CRP) typically change during total sleep deprivation (TSD) and psychological stress; however, it remains unknown whether these biological markers can differentiate robust individual differences in neurobehavioral performance and self-rated sleepiness resulting from these stressors. Additionally, little is known about cortisol and CRP recovery after TSD. In our study, 32 healthy adults (ages 27-53; mean ± SD, 35.1 ± 7.1 years; 14 females) participated in a highly controlled 5-day experiment in the Human Exploration Research Analog (HERA), a high-fidelity National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) space analog isolation facility, consisting of two baseline nights, 39 h TSD, and two recovery nights. Psychological stress was induced by a modified Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) on the afternoon of TSD. Salivary cortisol and plasma CRP were obtained at six time points, before (pre-study), during [baseline, the morning of TSD (TSD AM), the afternoon of TSD (TSD PM), and recovery], and after (post-study) the experiment. A neurobehavioral test battery, including measures of behavioral attention and cognitive throughput, and a self-report measure of sleepiness, was administered 11 times. Resilient and vulnerable groups were defined by a median split on the average TSD performance or sleepiness score. Low and high pre-study cortisol and CRP were defined by a median split on respective values at pre-study. Cortisol and CRP both changed significantly across the study, with cortisol, but not CRP, increasing during TSD. During recovery, cortisol levels did not return to pre-TSD levels, whereas CRP levels did not differ from baseline. When sex was added as a between-subject factor, the time × sex interaction was significant for cortisol. Resilient and vulnerable groups did not differ in cortisol and CRP, and low and high pre-study cortisol/CRP groups did not differ on performance tasks or self-reported sleepiness. Thus, both cortisol and CRP reliably changed in a normal, healthy population as a result of sleep loss; however, cortisol and CRP were not markers of neurobehavioral resilience to TSD and stress in this study.

Type of self-talk matters: Its effects on perceived exertion, cardiorespiratory, and cortisol responses during an iso-metabolic endurance exercise

Self-talk is an effective mental training technique that has been shown to facilitate or debilitate an athlete's performance, depending on its valence. Although the effects of self-talk have been supported by observing change in sport performance, little is known about how self-talk can induce physiological changes. Specifically, it is important to understand if the type of self-talk (positive, neutral, or negative) and can influence stress-related parameters, such as perceived exertion, cardiorespiratory, and cortisol responses. The study's objective was therefore to investigate the top-down effect of positive and negative self-talk compared to a dissociative activity during an iso-metabolic running exercise on autonomic regulation of cardiorespiratory function. Twenty-nine well-trained male runners [38 ± 13 years, 177 ± 7 cm and 73 ± 7 kg] volunteered to participate in a randomized-group design study that included a negative self-talk (NST), a positive self-talk, and a dissociative group (DG). First, participants underwent an incremental running test on a treadmill to determine the maximal oxygen uptake (V̇O_2max ). Next, participants received a mental training session on self-talk and created three positive and three negative self-talk statements. Finally, participants underwent a 60-min steady-state running exercise on a treadmill at 70% of V̇O_2max , during which they were cued at 20-, 35-, and 50-min with their personal self-created positive or negative self-talk statements while the DG listened to a documentary. Cardiorespiratory parameters and rate of perceived exertion (RPE) were recorded throughout the 60-min endurance exercise. In addition, salivary cortisol samples were obtained at waking and after treatment. Although oxygen uptake, carbon dioxide production, RPE, and heart rate significantly changed overtime during the 60-min steady-state running exercise, no significant main treatment effect was found. However, RPE scores, minute ventilation, breathing frequency, and salivary cortisol were significantly higher in the NST group compared to the two other groups. These data suggest that NST [emotion-induced stress, as reflected by elevated cortisol] altered the breathing frequency response. In conclusion, manipulating self-talk alters hormonal response patterns, modulates cardiorespiratory function, and influences perceived exertion.

Mild early-life stress exaggerates the impact of acute stress on corticolimbic resting-state functional connectivity

Abundant evidence shows that early‐life stress (ELS) predisposes for the development of stress‐related psychopathology when exposed to stressors later in life, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. To study predisposing effects of mild ELS on stress sensitivity, we examined in a healthy human population the impact of a history of ELS on acute stress‐related changes in corticolimbic circuits involved in emotional processing (i.e., amygdala, hippocampus and ventromedial prefrontal cortex [vmPFC]). Healthy young male participants (n = 120) underwent resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in two separate sessions (stress induction vs. control). The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) was administered to index self‐reported ELS, and stress induction was verified using salivary cortisol, blood pressure, heart rate and subjective affect. Our findings show that self‐reported ELS was negatively associated with baseline cortisol, but not with the acute stress‐induced cortisol response. Critically, individuals with more self‐reported ELS exhibited an exaggerated reduction of functional connectivity in corticolimbic circuits under acute stress. A mediation analysis showed that the association between ELS and stress‐induced changes in amygdala–hippocampal connectivity became stronger when controlling for basal cortisol. Our findings show, in a healthy sample, that the effects of mild ELS on functioning of corticolimbic circuits only become apparent when exposed to an acute stressor and may be buffered by adaptations in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis function. Overall, our findings might reveal a potential mechanism whereby even mild ELS might confer vulnerability to exposure to stressors later in adulthood.

EEG revealed improved vigilance regulation after stress exposure under Nx4 - A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over trial

Objectives

Vigilance is characterized by alertness and sustained attention. The hyper-vigilance states are indicators of stress experience in the resting brain. Neurexan (Nx4) has been shown to modulate the neuroendocrine stress response. Here, we hypothesized that the intake of Nx4 would alter brain vigilance states at rest.

Method

In this post-hoc analysis of the NEURIM study, EEG recordings of three, 12 min resting-state conditions in 39 healthy male volunteers were examined in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over clinical trial. EEG was recorded at three resting-state sessions: at baseline (RS0), after single-dose treatment with Nx4 or placebo (RS1), and subsequently after a psychosocial stress task (RS2). During each resting-state session, each 2-s segment of the consecutive EEG epochs was classified into one of seven different brain states along a wake-sleep continuum using the VIGALL 2.1 algorithm.

Results

In the post-stress resting-state, subjects exhibited a hyper-stable vigilance regulation characterized by an increase in the mean vigilance level and by more rigidity in the higher vigilance states for a longer period of time. Importantly, Nx4-treated participants exhibited significantly lower mean vigilance level compared to placebo-treated ones. Also, Nx4- compared to placebo-treated participants spent comparably less time in higher vigilance states and more time in lower vigilance states in the post-stress resting-state.

Conclusion

Study participants showed a significantly lower mean vigilance level in the post-stress resting-state condition and tended to stay longer in lower vigilance states after treatment with Nx4. These findings support the known stress attenuation effect of Nx4.

Stress-induced plasma cortisol concentrations in infancy are associated with later parenting behaviors in female rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta)

Few studies have longitudinally assessed the relationship between infant stress reactivity and future parenting style. Studies show that stress-induced plasma cortisol concentrations are stable over development and that they can be utilized as a marker for stress reactivity. This study investigates the relationship between stress-induced plasma cortisol concentrations in infancy and later parenting behavior in a translational nonhuman primate model. We hypothesized that higher stress-induced cortisol levels in infancy would predict impairments in maternal behaviors in adulthood. Subjects were rhesus macaque females (N = 122; Macaca mulatta), assessed as infants and again as mothers. At 3-4 months of age, subjects underwent a standardized BioBehavioral Assessment during which blood samples were obtained and they were assessed for behaviorally inhibition. Approximately 7 years later, subjects were observed as they interacted with their own offspring for four 300-s sessions. Typical rhesus monkey mother-offspring behaviors were recorded, including approaches and leaves and maternal cradling. Results showed that subjects' stress-induced cortisol concentrations and whether they exhibited behavioral inhibition as infants predicted later maternal behavior, with high cortisol concentrations and behavioral inhibition predicting high rates of offspring approaches and leaves and low rates of maternal cradling. Results also showed that higher stress-induced cortisol concentrations in infancy predicted higher scores on the Brown Index, an indication that the subjects' offspring, rather than the subject themselves, initiated changes in proximity. Taken together, these results suggest that individuals that exhibit higher stress-induced cortisol concentrations and behavioral inhibition at 3-4 months of age are at risk for engaging in less sensitive parenting behaviors as adults. To the extent that these findings generalize to humans, they suggest an important link between stress-induced cortisol concentrations and behavioral inhibition in infancy and behavior later in life, such that early-life stress reactivity can serve as a marker for later parenting behavior.

Internalized weight bias and cortisol reactivity to social stress

Weight-associated stigmatization and discrimination may induce chronic stress in individuals with obesity. As a consequence, this stressor may cause an imbalance of HPA stress axis leading to increased eating behavior, and ultimately, weight gain. However, the direct link between internalized weight bias and stress response to acute stressors via cortisol secretion has not been investigated so far. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the interaction between internalized weight stigma as a stressor and cortisol reactivity in an acute psychosocial stress situation induced by the Trier Socials Stress Test for groups (TSST-G). Participants with BMI >30 kg/m² (n = 79) were included in the study. Results reveal that while individuals with low internalized stigma reacted as predicted with an increase in cortisol secretion to acute psychosocial stress, individuals with medium or high internalized stigma did not show a typical cortisol response. However, these findings depend on the several factors, for instance on gender. In sum, acute stress in individuals with internalized weight bias seems to blunt HPA axis reactions to acute psychosocial stress. The study contributes to the understanding of the psychological and endocrinological consequences of internalized weight bias and underlines the importance of interventions to reduce stigmatization.

Salivary Biomarkers and Work-Related Stress in Night Shift Workers

Work organization, such as shifts and night work, can interfere with the perception of work-related stress and therefore on the development of pathological conditions. Night shift work, particularly, can have a negative impact on workers’ wellbeing by interfering with the biological sphere. The aim of this study is to evaluate the associations between work activities, shift work effects and stress-related responses in 106 dock workers enrolled in southeast Italy. Dock workers’ tasks consist of complex activities that seemed to affect more sleep quality than work-related stress. An analysis of salivary biomarkers such as cortisol, α-amylase, melatonin and lysozyme was performed along with validated psycho-diagnostic questionnaires. Alpha-amylase showed a significant negative correlation with the effort/reward imbalance score; thus, the measurement of salivary α-amylase is proposed as a sensitive and non-invasive biomarker of work-related stress. This study may provide new insights into developing strategies for the management of night shift work. Salivary biomarkers should be further investigated in the future in order to develop simple and effective tools for the early diagnosis of work-related stress or its outcomes.

The brain under stress-A systematic review and activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis of changes in BOLD signal associated with acute stress exposure

Psychosocial stress is an omnipresent phenomenon whose neural correlates in humans are still poorly understood. Several paradigms have been developed to induce acute stress in fMRI settings, but it is unclear whether there is a global brain activation pattern related to psychosocial stress. To integrate the different neuronal activation patterns, we conducted an activation likelihood estimation analysis on 31 studies totaling 1279 participants. Studies used the ScanSTRESS, Montreal Imaging Stress Test, aversive viewing paradigm (AVP), Social-Evaluative Threat or Cyberball. The analysis revealed bilateral activation clusters comprising the claustrum, insula and inferior frontal gyrus. This indicates that exposure to psychosocial stress leads to activations in brain areas involved in affective processing and the endocrine stress response. Furthermore, in a systematic review, Cyberball and AVP presented themselves as outliers due to increased activation in motor areas and lack of induction of stress related activity changes, respectively. As different paradigms emphasize different dimensions of psychosocial stress such as social evaluation or performance pressure, future research is needed to identify differences between the paradigms.

Beyond family-level adversities: Exploring the developmental timing of neighborhood disadvantage effects on the brain

A growing literature suggests that adversity is associated with later altered brain function, particularly within the corticolimbic system that supports emotion processing and salience detection (e.g., amygdala, prefrontal cortex [PFC]). Although neighborhood socioeconomic disadvantage has been shown to predict maladaptive behavioral outcomes, particularly for boys, most of the research linking adversity to corticolimbic function has focused on family-level adversities. Moreover, although animal models and studies of normative brain development suggest that there may be sensitive periods during which adversity exerts stronger effects on corticolimbic development, little prospective evidence exists in humans. Using two low-income samples of boys (n = 167; n = 77), Census-derived neighborhood disadvantage during early childhood, but not adolescence, was uniquely associated with greater amygdala, but not PFC, reactivity to ambiguous neutral faces in adolescence and young adulthood. These associations remained after accounting for several family-level adversities (e.g., low family income, harsh parenting), highlighting the independent and developmentally specific neural effects of the neighborhood context. Furthermore, in both samples, indicators measuring income and poverty status of neighbors were predictive of amygdala function, suggesting that neighborhood economic resources may be critical to brain development.

Sensory processing and cortisol at age 4 years: Procedural pain-related stress in children born very preterm

Children born preterm display altered sensory processing, which may manifest as hyper- and/or hypo-sensitivity to sensory information. In this vulnerable population, exposure to neonatal pain-related stress is associated with altered stress regulation, as indexed by alterations in cortisol levels. It is unknown whether sensory processing behaviors are also affected by early life adversity, and whether dysregulated cortisol is related to sensory processing problems in preterm children. We examined relationships between neonatal pain-related stress, sensory processing profiles and cortisol levels at age 4 years, and whether pathways were sex-specific. In a longitudinal prospective cohort study, N = 146 infants born 24-32 weeks gestational age were recruited from BC Women's Hospital, Vancouver, BC, Canada; neonatal factors were collected from daily chart review. At age 4 years, saliva to assay cortisol was collected three times across cognitive assessment (pre-test, during, end) and parents completed the Short Sensory Profile questionnaire. Using generalized linear modeling, independent of other neonatal factors, higher number of invasive procedures (pain/stress) was associated with more sensory processing problems (total, hypo- and hyper-sensitivity) for girls only. After accounting for neonatal factors, greater cortisol output across the assessment was associated with more total sensory processing problems in girls only, and hypersensitivity to sensory input in both boys and girls. Findings suggest that in children born very preterm, how a child responds to sensory input and cortisol reactivity to stress are related but may have different precursors. Girls may be somewhat more susceptible to neonatal pain-related stress exposure in relation to sensory processing at preschool age.

Emotion regulation deficits mediate childhood sexual abuse effects on stress sensitization and depression outcomes

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a notable risk factor for depressive disorders. Though multiply determined, increased sensitivity to stress (stress sensitization) and difficulty managing distress (emotion regulation) may reflect two pathways by which CSA confers depression risk. However, it remains unclear whether stress sensitization and emotion regulation deficits contribute to depression risk independently or in a sequential manner. That is, the frequent use of maladaptive emotion regulation responses and insufficient use of those that attenuate distress (adaptive emotion regulation) may lead to stress sensitization. We tested competing models of CSA, stress sensitization, and emotion regulation to predict depression symptoms and depressive affects in daily life among adults with and without histories of CSA. Results supported a sequential mediation: CSA predicted greater maladaptive repertoires that, in turn, exacerbated the effects of stress on depression symptoms. Maladaptive responses also exacerbated the effects of daily life stress on contemporaneous negative affect (NA) levels and their increase over time. Independent of stress sensitization, emotion regulation deficits also mediated CSA effects on both depressive outcomes, though the effect of maladaptive strategies was specific to NA, and adaptive responses to positive affect. Our findings suggest that emotion regulation deficits and stress sensitization play key intervening roles between CSA and risk for depression.

Associations between brain activity and endogenous and exogenous cortisol - A systematic review

To arrive at a coherent understanding of the relation between glucocorticoids and the human brain, we systematically reviewed the literature for studies examining the associations between endogenous or exogenous cortisol and human brain function. Higher levels of endogenous cortisol during psychological stress were related to increased activity in the middle temporal gyrus and perigenual anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), decreased activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and altered function (i.e., mixed findings, increased or decreased) in the amygdala, hippocampus and inferior frontal gyrus. Moreover, endogenous cortisol response to psychological stress was related to increased activity in the inferior temporal gyrus and altered function in the amygdala during emotional tasks that followed psychological stress. Exogenous cortisol administration was related to increased activity in the postcentral gyrus, superior frontal gyrus and ACC, and altered function in the amygdala and hippocampus during conditioning, emotional and reward-processing tasks after cortisol administration. These findings were in line with those from animal studies on amygdala activity during and after stress.

Endogenous cortisol-related alterations of right anterior insula functional connectivity under acute stress

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have suggested that the right anterior insula (rAI) plays a vital role in salience processing and stress-related disorders. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between rAI functional connectivity changes and individual differences in cortisol responses after acute stress, in order to provide insights into psychiatric illness vulnerabilities.

METHODS

Thirty-five young men were enrolled in a randomized, counterbalanced two-session study, with aversive movie clip combined with electrical shocks as stress stimulation and the neutral movie clip as control stimulation. Resting-state fMRI data was acquired after movie exposure. The rAI was chosen as seed for functional connectivity analysis. We then examined the effect of acute stress on rAI functional connectivity and its association with individuals' cortisol response.

RESULTS

We found decreased rAI functional connectivity in the fronto-parietal regions, but increased functional connectivity in the visual and somatosensory areas following acute stress. Moreover, stress-induced cortisol response was significantly positively correlated with the rAI functional connectivity in the medial prefrontal cortex, and negatively correlated with the orbital-frontal cortex, lingual gyrus, and middle temporal gyrus.

LIMITATIONS

Only young Chinese males without any trauma experience were recruited in this study.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggested tight link between specific rAI functional connectivity alterations and individual stress reactivity, which may help elucidate the potential neurobiological mechanism underlying vulnerability to stress-related disorders.

Hormonal and modality specific effects on males' emotion recognition ability

Successful emotion recognition is a key component of human socio-emotional communication skills. However, little is known about the factors impacting males' accuracy in emotion recognition tasks. This pre-registered study examined potential candidates, focusing on the modality of stimulus presentation, emotion category and individual baseline hormone levels. In an additional exploratory analysis, we examined the association of testosterone x cortisol interaction with recognition accuracy and reaction times. We obtained accuracy and reaction time scores from 282 males who categorized voice, face and voice-face stimuli for nonverbal emotional content. Results showed that recognition accuracy was significantly higher in the audio-visual than in the auditory or visual modality. While Spearman's rank correlations showed no significant association of testosterone (T) with recognition accuracy or with response times for specific emotions, the logistic and linear regression models uncovered some evidence for a positive association between T and recognition accuracy as well as between cortisol (C) and reaction time. In addition, the overall effect size of T by C interaction with recognition accuracy and reaction time was significant, but small. Our results establish that audio-visual congruent stimuli enhance recognition accuracy and provide novel empirical support by showing that the interaction of testosterone and cortisol relates to males' accuracy and response times in emotion recognition tasks.

The timing-dependent effects of stress-induced cortisol release on evaluative conditioning

The neuro-physiological response to stress has far-reaching implications for learning and memory processes. Here, we examined whether and how the stress-induced release of cortisol, following the socially-evaluated cold pressor test, influenced the acquisition of preferences in an evaluative conditioning (EC) procedure. We found that when the stressor preceded the evaluation phase, cortisol responders showed decreased evaluative conditioning effects. By contrast, impairing effects of a stressor-induced cortisol release before encoding were not found. Moreover, explicit memory was not found to be affected by the stressor or its timing. Implications of the timing-dependent effects of stress-induced cortisol release on EC and the relation between stress and associative memory are discussed.

Good vibrations: An observational study of real-life stress induced by a stage performance

Stressors induce physiological changes in the brain and periphery that support adaptive defensive responses. The consequences of psychological stress on cognitive functioning are often measured in laboratory settings using experimentally induced stress that leads to mainly negative subjective feelings. There is a need for verification of these studies using real-life stressors that may potentially induce both positive and negative subjective feelings. In an observational study, we investigated real-life stress induced by voluntary stage performance at a large-scale music festival, including 126 participants (60 female, age range = 16-57 years). Our primary measurements involved salivary cortisol, heart rate, blood pressure, and positive and negative affect. In addition, participants completed a 2-back working memory task and a speeded decision-making task. We found that stage performance significantly increased salivary cortisol - with a particularly low number of cortisol non-responders - and heart rate, even when controlling for potential confounding factors, such as sleep, movement, and alcohol use. Interestingly, stage performance significantly decreased negative affect while increasing positive affect. This positively experienced stressor ("eustressor") was related to impaired working memory performance: the stronger the increases in cortisol, the slower participants responded to targets. Decision-making, however, was not affected. In conclusion, we show how stressful experiences in real-life can lead to positive affect, but still have a similar negative impact on cognitive functioning. We suggest that future research should focus more on the consequences of real-life stressors, and the consequences of eustress, in order to extend our understanding of the concept of psychological stress.

Reflective and Reflexive Stress Responses of Older Adults to Three Gaming Experiences In Relation to Their Cognitive Abilities: Mixed Methods Crossover Study

BACKGROUND

The gamification of digital health provisions for older adults (eg, for rehabilitation) is a growing trend; however, many older adults are not familiar with digital games. This lack of experience could cause stress and thus impede participants' motivations to adopt these technologies.

OBJECTIVE

This crossover longitudinal multifactorial study aimed to examine the interactions between game difficulty, appraisal, cognitive ability, and physiological and cognitive responses that indicate game stress using the Affective Game Planning for Health Applications framework.

METHODS

A total of 18 volunteers (mean age 71 years, SD 4.5; 12 women) completed a three-session study to evaluate different genres of games in increasing order of difficulty (S₁-BrainGame, S₂-CarRace, and S₃-Exergame). Each session included an identical sequence of activities (t₁-Baseline, t₂-Picture encode, t₃-Play, t₄-Stroop test, t₅-Play, and t₆-Picture recall), a repeated sampling of salivary cortisol, and time-tagged ambulatory data from a wrist-worn device. Generalized estimating equations were used to investigate the effect of session×activity or session×activity×cognitive ability on physiology and cognitive performance. Scores derived from the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) test were used to define cognitive ability (MoCA-high: MoCA>27, n=11/18). Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to test session or session×group effects on the scores of the postgame appraisal questionnaire.

RESULTS

Session×activity effects were significant on all ambulatory measures (χ²₁₀>20; P<.001) other than cortisol (P=.37). Compared with S₁ and S₂, S₃ was associated with approximately 10 bpm higher heart rate (P<.001) and approximately 5 muS higher electrodermal activity (P<.001), which were both independent of the movement caused by the exergame. Compared with S₁, we measured a moderate but statistically significant drop in the rate of hits in immediate recall and rate of delayed recall in S₃. The low-MoCA group did not differ from the high-MoCA group in general characteristics (age, general self-efficacy, and perceived stress) but was more likely to agree with statements such as digital games are too hard to learn. In addition, the low-MoCA group was more likely to dislike the gaming experience and find it useless, uninteresting, and visually more intense (χ²₁>4; P<.04). Group differences in ambulatory signals did not reach statistical significance; however, the rate of cortisol decline with respect to the baseline was significantly larger in the low-MoCA group.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results show that the experience of playing digital games was not stressful for our participants. Comparatively, the neurophysiological effects of exergame were more pronounced in the low-MoCA group, suggesting greater potential of this genre of games for cognitive and physical stimulation by gamified interventions; however, the need for enjoyment of this type of challenging game must be addressed.

Glucocorticoid response to stress induction prior to learning is negatively related to subsequent motor memory consolidation

Hippocampal activity during early motor sequence learning is critical to trigger subsequent sleep-related consolidation processes. Based on previous evidence that stress-induced cortisol release modulates hippocampal activity, the current study investigates whether exposure to stress prior to motor sequence learning influences the ensuing learning and overnight consolidation process. Seventy-four healthy young adults were exposed to a stressor (i.e., the socially evaluated cold pressor test, SECPT) or a control procedure before initial training on a bimanual motor sequence learning task. Participants were retested on the motor task 24 h (including a night of sleep) after training to assess memory consolidation. Our results indicate that the SECPT, as compared to the control condition, induced significant physiological stress responses as evidenced by increased heart rate and blood pressure as well as elevated salivary cortisol concentrations. Cortisol concentration in the stress group reached peak levels immediately before and stayed significantly elevated for the full duration of initial motor learning before returning to baseline during the consolidation period. Stress induction prior to learning did not, on average, influence initial performance nor subsequent motor memory consolidation as indicated by similar overnight gains in performance in both groups. However, higher levels of stress-induced cortisol prior to training were correlated to smaller overnight gains in performance speed. These results indicate that the glucocorticoid response to a stressful encounter experienced prior to hippocampal-mediated motor learning is negatively related to subsequent memory consolidation processes.

Interdependent self-construal, social evaluative threat and subjective, cardiovascular and neuroendocrine stress response in Chinese

Interdependent self-construal (ISC) is a concept positing that people define their self through social roles and relationships with others. We investigated in two independent studies whether ISC had an effect on psychological and endocrine stress responses. Study 1 collected data of 295 healthy young Chinese participants' subjective report of ISC using the self-construal scale, and daily levels of stress using the daily stress inventory. Correlational analyses showed that individuals with higher ISC perceived higher levels of stress in daily life. Study 2 added biological measures of stress by analyzing both basal cortisol levels and reactive cortisol level of high/low ISC individuals (23 high and 23 low ISC healthy young Chinese participants recruited from a total of 440 participants), in response to the Trier Social Stress test. Participants with high ISC showed higher cortisol stress responses, higher heart rate measurements, and higher subjective stress reports when compared to low ISC participants. Further analyses suggested that participants' perception of social evaluative threat mediated the association between ISC and the cortisol stress response. Taken together, these findings suggest a significant role of ISC in regulating the biological and psychological stress response. These findings are discussed in the context of other personality factors known to affect the stress response, and the cultural-related self-construal literature. We also discuss the possible application of the ISC personality factor for future stress studies.

From words to action: Implicit attention to antisocial semantic cues predicts aggression and amygdala reactivity to angry faces in healthy young women

Implicit measures of aggressiveness are able to circumvent response biases that plague self-reports, but it is unclear how they link to neural activation during aggressive interactions and to aggression-related endocrine function. Here, we tested whether an implicit attentional bias toward antisocial semantic information was associated with endogenous testosterone (T) and cortisol (C) levels, as well as with aggressive behavior and amygdala reactivity to angry faces in a separate competitive paradigm. On Day one, participants (39 healthy young women) completed an emotional word Stroop task in which they had to indicate the font color of antisocial, prosocial, or neutral words. On Day two, we measured subjects' brain activity during a competitive reaction time task in which the female opponent displayed angry or neutral facial expressions at the start of each trial and provoked participants with increasingly strong sound blasts. T and C were measured in saliva during a regular weekday as well as before and after scanning. We previously showed that aggression was associated with enhanced amygdala reactivity to angry faces in this sample. The present analyses revealed that subjects were slower to identify the font color of antisocial relative to neutral words, and that this attentional bias predicted higher aggression. T and C were uncorrelated with Stroop scores. Crucially, the relationship between implicit attention to antisocial words and aggression was mediated by amygdala reactivity to angry faces. Our data indicate that a tendency to dwell on implicit hostile cues reflects enhanced responsivity to overt anger displays.

Amygdala reactivity as a marker of differential susceptibility to socioeconomic resources during early adulthood

Models of differential susceptibility hypothesize that neural function may be a marker of differential susceptibility to context, but no studies have tested this hypothesis. Using a sample of 310 young men from low-income urban neighborhoods, this study investigated amygdala reactivity to facial expressions as a moderator of the relations between socioeconomic resources and later antisocial behavior (AB) and income. For individuals with high amygdala reactivity, greater socioeconomic resources at age 20 predicted less AB and greater income at age 22. For young men with low amygdala reactivity, however, socioeconomic resources at age 20 did not predict later outcomes. Amygdala reactivity to fearful facial expressions, key to the etiology of AB, moderated links between resources and AB. In contrast, amygdala reactivity more generally to multiple facial expressions moderated the effects of resources on later income attainment. Both interactions met rigorous quantitative criteria for patterns of differential susceptibility rather than diathesis stress or vantage sensitivity. Moreover, these associations remained significant after inclusion of socioeconomic resources during earlier developmental periods. These results suggest that greater amygdala reactivity to facial expressions is a marker of greater susceptibility to context, for better or for worse, during the transition to adulthood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Systems, variation, individuality and plant hormones

Inter-individual variation in plants and particularly in hormone content, figures strongly in evolution and behaviour. Homo sapiens and Arabidopsis exhibit similar and substantial phenotypic and molecular variation. Whereas there is a very substantial degree of hormone variation in mankind, reports of inter-individual variation in plant hormone content are virtually absent but are likely to be as large if not larger than that in mankind. Reasons for this absence are discussed. Using an example of inter-individual variation in ethylene content in ripening, the article shows how biological time is compressed by hormones. It further resolves an old issue of very wide hormone dose response that result directly from negative regulation in hormone (and light) transduction. Negative regulation is used because of inter-individual variability in hormone synthesis, receptors and ancillary proteins, a consequence of substantial genomic and environmental variation. Somatic mosaics have been reported for several plant tissues and these too contribute to tissue variation and wide variation in hormone response. The article concludes by examining what variation exists in gravitropic responses. There are multiple sensing systems of gravity vectors and multiple routes towards curvature. These are an aspect of the need for reliability in both inter-individual variation and unpredictable environments. Plant hormone inter-individuality is a new area for research and is likely to change appreciation of the mechanisms that underpin individual behaviour.

Common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) personality, subjective well-being, hair cortisol level and AVPR1a, OPRM1, and DAT genotypes

We studied personality, subjective well-being, and hair cortisol level, in common marmosets Callithrix jacchus, a small, cooperatively breeding New World monkey, by examining their associations with one another and genotypes. Subjects were 68 males and 9 females that lived in the RIKEN Center for Life Science Technologies. Personality and subjective well-being were assessed by keeper ratings on two questionnaires, hair samples were obtained to assay cortisol level and buccal swabs were used to assess AVPR1a, OPRM1 and DAT genotypes. Three personality domains-Dominance, Sociability, and Neuroticism-were identified. Consistent with findings in other species, Sociability and Neuroticism were related to higher and lower subjective well-being, respectively. Sociability was also associated with higher hair cortisol levels. The personality domains and hair cortisol levels were heritable and associated with genotypes: the short form of AVPR1a was associated with lower Neuroticism and the AA genotype of the A111T SNP of OPRM1 was related to lower Dominance, lower Neuroticism, and higher hair cortisol level. Some genetic associations were not in directions that one would expect given findings in other species. These findings provide insights into the proximate and ultimate bases of personality in common marmosets, other primates and humans.

Stress-Induced Depression: Is Social Rank a Predictive Risk Factor?

An intriguing question in the field of stress is what makes an individual more likely to be susceptible or resilient to stress-induced depression. Predisposition to stress susceptibility is believed to be influenced by genetic factors and early adversity. However, beyond genetics and life experiences, recent evidence has highlighted social rank as a key determinant of susceptibility to stress, underscoring dominant individuals as the vulnerable ones. This evidence is in conflict with epidemiological, clinical, and animal work pointing at a link between social subordination and depression. Here, we review and analyze rodent protocols addressing the relevance of social rank to predict vulnerability to chronic social stress. We also discuss whether a specific social status (i.e., dominance or subordination) is the appropriate predictor of vulnerability to develop stress-induced depression or rather, the loss of social rank and resources.

Hair cortisol and the relationship with chronic pain and quality of life in endometriosis patients

Endometriosis is a chronic estrogen-dependent disease in which pelvic pain is the dominant symptom. The negative effects of endometriosis on the life of women with this disease can be a cause of stress. Stress levels can be measured in different ways, mostly reflecting acute stress responses. Hair cortisol measurements are a reflection of long-term systematic cortisol levels. In this study a first attempt is made to measure cortisol levels in hair of endometriosis patients in comparison with healthy controls. Moreover, it is explored whether chronic pain symptoms as well as different aspects of Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) are associated with hair cortisol levels in women with endometriosis. Results show that the mean hair cortisol level is significantly higher in women with endometriosis compared to healthy controls (p = 0.018). There is a positive correlation between hair cortisol level and HRQoL in patients but not in controls (Rho 0.426). The level of hair cortisol does not correlate with the reported pain intensity in patients (Rho -0.082). These results are indicative of an altered HPA-axis function in endometriosis patients, possibly caused by higher chronic stress level in these patients. Moreover, a potential explanation for the positive correlation of cortisol with the HRQoL in these patients is that patients with a high HRQoL have an adequate stress response by increasing their cortisol levels as a response to physical and emotional stress induced by the endometriosis.