Subjective mild depressive symptoms are associated with abnormal diurnal cycle of salivary cortisol in older adults

"What's yours is mine": Partners' everyday emotional experiences and cortisol in older adult couples

The existing literature consistently finds that emotional experiences and cortisol secretion are linked at the within-person level. Further, relationship partners tend to covary in emotional experience, and in cortisol secretion. However, we are only beginning to understand whether and how an individuals' emotions are linked to their relationship partners' cortisol secretion. In this project, we harmonized data from three intensive measurement studies originating from Canada and Germany to investigate the daily dynamics of emotions and cortisol within 321 older adult couples (age range=56-87 years). Three-level multilevel models accounted for the nested structure of the data (repeated assessments within individuals within couples). Actor-Partner Interdependence Models were used to examine the effect of own emotional experiences (actor effects) and partner emotional experiences (partner effects) on momentary and daily cortisol secretion. Adjusting for age, sex, education, comorbidities, assay version, diurnal cortisol rhythm, time spent together, medication, and time-varying behaviors that may increase cortisol secretion, results suggest that higher relationship partner's positive emotions are linked with lower momentary cortisol and total daily cortisol. Further, this association was stronger for older participants and those who reported higher relationship satisfaction. We did not find within-couple links between negative emotions and cortisol. Overall, our results suggest that one's relationship partner's positive emotional experience may be a protective factor for their physiological responding, and that these more fleeting and day-to-day fluctuations may accumulate over time, contributing to overall relationship satisfaction.

Cognitive status and low sun exposure as frailty major risk factor among older people in a rural area of East Java, Indonesia: A cross-sectional study

AIM

To reveal the prevalence of frailty and factors that strongly affected the frailty condition among older adults in East Java, Indonesia.

METHOD

We conducted a cross-sectional study carried out among 400 older adults aged ≥60 years without any acute illness. Data were collected from rural area in two locations in Malang and Pasuruan, East Java, Indonesia, in 2019-2020. For data collection, we used the sociodemographic profile assessment, Fried frailty phenotype, Geriatric Depression Scale, Mini Mental State assessment, sun exposure, handgrip strength, International Physical Activity Questionnaire, walk score, and body mass index. We used logistic regression statistics for data analysis.

RESULTS

The result showed that 2.5% were robust, 83% were prefrail, and 14.5% were frail. A higher proportion of subjects were aged 60-74 years (83.3%), women (70.3%), with lower educational status (84.5%). Multivariate analysis showed that the intrinsic factors low cognitive status (odds ratio [OR], 3.052 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.691-5.508]) and older age (OR, 3.073 [95% CI, 1.637-5.767]) were associated with frailty among the older adults in a rural area. Depression was also associated with frailty (OR, 2.458 [95% CI, 0.465-12.985]). From extrinsic factors, we also found that low sun exposure (OR, 2.931 [95% CI, 1.650-5.204]) and unemployment (OR, 1.997 [95% CI, 1.112-3.588]) were associated with frailty.

CONCLUSION

For the Indonesian elderly in this study, low cognitive status, older age, depression, low sun exposure, and unemployment were associated with frailty. Understanding the modifiable risk factors of frailty can provide a valuable reference for future prevention and intervention. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2024; 24: 170-175.

Salivary Testosterone and Cortisol Levels in Tunisian Elderly Male Patients With Mild Alzheimer’s Disease. Implications of Musical Therapy And/Or Physical Rehabilitation

Changes in salivary testosterone (T) and cortisol (C) levels were assessed in elderly Tunisian male patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease (AD) subjected to music therapy and/or physical rehabilitation. Male patients with mild AD (N = 26; age = 76.23 ± 4.27 years; weight: 74.76 ± 5.36 kg) were randomly assigned into four groups for three 60-min sessions per week for 4 months; including Group1 or control group (Co) (n = 6); Group2 (n = 6), participated in physical rehabilitation (PR); Group3 (n = 7), subjected to music therapy (MT) and Group4 (n = 7), participated simultaneously in music therapy and physical rehabilitation (MT + PR). Salivary T levels increased (ηp² = 0.7) and C levels decreased (ηp² = 0.69), significantly (p < 0.001) in the PR, MT and MT + PR groups compared to the Co group respectively. Also, increases in salivary T levels and decreases in C levels in MT + PR group were greater compared to the other groups. MT increased T levels (p < 0.001) and decreased C levels (p < 0.05) to a greater extent than the PR group respectively. Changes in salivary T levels were positively (r = 0.83; p < 0.001) and C levels were negatively (r = -0.86; p < 0.001) correlated in the PR, MT and MT + PR groups with changes in MMSE in AD patients. This study highlights that combination of MT and PR holds potential to treat AD.

Immune-endocrine biomarkers associated with mental health: A 9-year longitudinal investigation from the Hertfordshire Ageing Study

BACKGROUND

The study of neural-endocrine-immune system interactions has led to substantial advances in our understanding of neuropsychiatric disorders. Growing evidence reveals the pivotal roles of inflammatory cytokines signalling the brain to produce neurochemical, neuroendocrine, and neuroimmune changes which affect mood and behaviour. Ageing is accompanied by the development of low-grade systemic inflammation which may promote changes in the neural systems predisposing to geriatric depression via the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The aim of this study was to investigate the longitudinal associations between baseline values and conditional changes (independent of baseline) in immune-endocrine biomarkers and mental health status in a population-based cohort of older adults.

METHODS

Data from 347 subjects (200 men, 147 women) who participated in the Hertfordshire Ageing Study at baseline (1994/5, mean age 67.3 years) and at 9-year follow-up were analysed. Serum samples for analysis of inflammatory and endocrinological measures were collected at baseline and follow-up. At follow-up, depression (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale) and mental health (Short Form-36 questionnaire) were assessed. Baseline values and changes in biomarkers in relation to risk of high depression scores (top sex-specific third) and low mental health scores (bottom sex-specific third) were examined using logistic regression.

RESULTS

Lower baseline cortisol was related to greater risk of high depression scores; higher baseline cortisol: dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate ratio (men only) and higher baseline C-reactive protein (CRP) (women only) were related to greater risk of poor mental health scores. In addition, greater decline in cortisol was related to increased risk of high depression scores among men. These relationships were robust (p < 0.05) after controlling for sex, age, BMI, smoking, alcohol consumption and number of systems medicated.

CONCLUSION

This study provides further evidence of the role of the HPA axis and inflammation in older adults with poor mental health. In addition, the findings highlight sex differences where increased inflammation in women and declines in cortisol in men were linked to poorer mental health. Further research is warranted to confirm these findings. This could lead to the search for potential biomarkers to stratify medications as well as developing novel intervention targets to improve mental health at older age.

Early life stress and HPA axis function independently predict adult depressive symptoms in metropolitan Cebu, Philippines

OBJECTIVES

Alterations in adult hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity have increasingly been linked with early life stress and adult depression, but a limited number of studies have used longitudinal data to explore HPA axis dysregulation as an underlying mechanism driving the long-term depressive impacts of early stressors. Here we address potential long-term impacts of early life, family-based stress on depressive symptoms among young adults in a longitudinal birth cohort study begun in 1983 in the Philippines.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We relate a composite measure of family-based stressors experienced between birth and adolescence to circadian dynamics in adult salivary cortisol and depressive risk measured at 21-22 years of age. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between early life stress levels and risk of adult depressive symptoms, as well as the role of adult diurnal cortisol activity in this relationship.

RESULTS

Greater levels of early life familial stress predicted more severe depressive symptomatology at age 21-22 in a dose-response fashion (p < .0001) independent of adult diurnal cortisol patterns. Flatter diurnal cortisol slopes are directly associated with higher adult depressive symptoms, an effect mostly driven by evening cortisol levels (p = .004). When considering the cumulative effects of early life stress measures, however, exposure to more of these stressors during development is associated with even higher depressive symptoms.

DISCUSSION

The long-term depressive effects of early life familial stress extend to this large sample of Cebuano young adults, and early life stress and HPA axis function may shape adult depressive symptoms through independent pathways in this sample. Our findings provide further evidence that HPA axis activity is shaped by early life conditions and is associated with depressive symptoms.

Correlation of lower 2 h C-peptide and elevated evening cortisol with high levels of depression in type 2 diabetes mellitus

BACKGROUND

A number of studies have explored the association between depression and ghrelin, leptin, and cortisol; further, postprandial C-peptide levels have a therapeutic effect on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, the relationship between C-peptide and depression in patients with diabetes, remains unclear. The aim of this study was to explore the association between depression and ghrelin, leptin, cortisol, and C-peptide in patients with diabetes.

METHODS

We enrolled 50 adults without T2DM, 77 non-depressed adults with T2DM (free of Axis-I psychiatric disorders as assessed using the Mental Illness Needs Index (MINI), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9 score ≤ 4)) and 59 patients with T2DM and depression (PHQ-9 ≥ 7 and positive by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5). The age range of the participants was 45-59 years of age. We compared the above three groups and explored the association between ghrelin, leptin, cortisol, C-peptide, and depression in patients with diabetes. A post-hoc power-analysis was finished.

RESULTS

Compared with the non-depression T2DM group, the depression T2DM group had significantly higher blood glucose fluctuations. Further, compared with the non-depression T2DM and non-diabetic groups, the depression T2DM group had significantly lower levels of post-meal 2-h C-peptide and elevated evening cortisol (p < 0.01). Regression analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between depression severity and 2-h postprandial C-peptide in patients with diabetes (p < 0.01) and a significant positive correlation with midnight cortisol levels (p < 0.01). A post hoc power analysis showed that we had an adequate sample size and met the minimum requirement to attain 80% power. A post hoc power calculation also demonstrated that this study basically achieved power of 80% at 5% alpha level.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings indicate a correlation of low fasting levels of 2-h C-peptide as well as higher midnight cortisol levels with higher depression severity in middle-aged patients with T2DM.

Inflammatory markers and cortisol parameters across depressive subtypes in an older cohort

BACKGROUND

There is growing evidence that inflammatory and cortisol dysregulation are underlying pathophysiological mechanisms in the aetiology of major depressive disorder, particularly in younger adults. However, findings of biological disturbances in late-life depression have been divergent, probably due to the even greater heterogeneity of depression in older adults with aging processes influencing biological factors. Using empirically derived subtypes may enable the identification of biological disturbances underlying depression in older adults.

METHODS

Data were used from the Netherlands Study of Depression in Older Persons (NESDO) of 359 persons aged 60 years or older, with a current diagnosis of major depressive disorder (MDD). Depressive subtypes (severe atypical, severe melancholic, and moderate severe subtype) that were previously identified through latent class analysis (LCA), were examined on differences in inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), as well as cortisol parameters.

RESULTS

No differences in measures for inflammation and cortisol across subtypes were observed in uncorrected or for putative confounders corrected models.

LIMITATIONS

Several subjects had missing cortisol and inflammatory data, decreasing the power. However, results did not change after imputation analysis.

DISCUSSION

In this cohort of depressed older adults, no differences in inflammation and cortisol measures between depression subtypes were observed. This is probably due to the many (patho)physiological processes that are involved in aging, thereby clouding the results.

The association of short-term memory and cognitive impairment with ghrelin, leptin, and cortisol levels in non-diabetic and diabetic elderly individuals

AIMS

This study assessed short-term memory and biochemical indicators with the levels of ghrelin, leptin, and cortisol between cognitive impairment and normal older adults with or without diabetes.

METHODS

We enrolled 286 older adults (aged 65-85 years) with or without diabetes from the local community. Short-term memory was assessed using pictures of common objects; cognitive functioning was assessed using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). The physiological indexes assessed were plasma levels of fasting ghrelin and leptin, ghrelin level at 2_h after breakfast, 24-h urinary cortisol value, body mass index, and plasma cortisol levels at 8:00 a.m., 4:00 p.m., and 12:00 p.m.

RESULTS

In both non-diabetic and diabetic subjects, short-term memory was significantly lower in the impaired cognition group (5.99 ± 2.90 in non-diabetic subjects and 4.71 ± 2.14 in diabetic subjects) than in the normal cognition group (8.14 ± 2.23 in non-diabetic subjects and 7.82 ± 3.37 in diabetic subjects). Baseline ghrelin level was significantly lower in the impaired cognition group (9.07 ± 1.13 ng/mL in non-diabetic subjects and 7.76 ± 1.34 ng/mL in diabetic subjects) than in the normal cognition group (10.94 ± 1.53 ng/mL in non-diabetic subjects and 9.93 ± 1.76 ng/mL in diabetic subjects); plasma cortisol levels at 8:00 a.m., 4:00 p.m., and 12:00 p.m. were significantly higher in the impaired cognition group than in the normal cognition group, while no significant difference was observed in plasma levels of fasting leptin between different groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Fasting plasma ghrelin and cortisol levels may be markers of cognitive decline and memory loss. It is possible that adjusting their levels may have a therapeutic effect, and this should be investigated in future studies.

Depressive symptomatology and cortisol concentrations in elderly community residents: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Researches seek to understand the links between adverse health outcomes and cortisol concentrations. However, the relationship between depressive symptomatology and cortisol concentrations is controversial in the literature.

AIM

To analyze the relationship between the depressive symptomatology and the cortisol concentrations in elderly community residents in the Brazilian Northeast.

METHODS

Cross-sectional study is composed of 256 elderly (≥65 years). Depressive symptomatology was evaluated by the Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale and cortisol concentrations by salivary collection (upon waking, 30 and 60 min after waking, at 3 pm and before bed), in addition to composite measurements. Sociodemographic and health conditions were evaluated. For analysis of the cortisol measurements in relation to depressive symptomatology, and between genders, the Student's t test was used. For cortisol measurements in every curve, analysis of variance for repeated measurements with Bonferroni post hoc test was used.

RESULTS

There were significant salivary cortisol differences upon awakening, among elderly with and without depressive symptomatology (p = 0.04). There was no significance in relation to gender. Between measurements of each curve, elderly with depressive symptomatology showed no significant difference between the 1st measure in relation to the 2nd and 3rd, and also between the 4th and 5th, demonstrating higher cortisol night levels in elderly with depressive symptomatology, without decline, with curve plane aspect.

CONCLUSION

The relationship between depressive symptomatology and hypocortisolism throughout the day seems to exist. However, in Brazil, adverse life conditions can lead to chronic stress and be sufficient factors to superpose biggest differences that could exist in relation to the presence of depressive symptomatology.

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity in older persons with and without a depressive disorder

BACKGROUND

Altered functioning of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA-axis) has been associated with depression, but findings have been inconsistent. Among older depressed persons, both hyperactivity and hypo-activity of the HPA-axis were demonstrated. However, most studies were population-based studies, with single cortisol measurements, lacking insight into diurnal patterns of HPA-axis functioning. We aim to provide insight into functioning of the HPA-axis, assessed by various salivary cortisol samples, in depressed older adults and non-depressed controls.

METHODS

Data were derived from the Netherlands Study of Depression in Older Persons. Cortisol levels of older persons without a lifetime diagnosis of depression and/or anxiety (n=109) were compared with older persons with a 6-month major depression diagnosis (n=311). ANCOVA analyses and random coefficient analysis on the four morning cortisol samples were performed. A possible U-shaped association between cortisol and depression status was examined.

RESULTS

Depressed older persons showed higher morning cortisol levels at awakening (T1) and a less dynamic awakening response compared to non-depressed older persons. Dexamethasone suppression did not differ across groups. No U-shaped association between HPA-axis activity and depression was observed.

CONCLUSION

We demonstrated a hypercortisolemic state and a diminished ability to respond to the stress of awakening among depressed older persons. Previously it was shown, that hypercortisolemic states may indicate a lifelong biological vulnerability for depression. Our findings expand on previous literature by demonstrating that in older persons the HPA-axis may become less responsive to stress, culminating in a further dysregulation of the diurnal cortisol-rhythm, superimposed on - possibly lifelong - hypercortisolemic states.

Depressive symptoms are associated with allostatic load among community-dwelling older adults

The allostatic load model has been used to quantify the physiological costs of the body's response to repeated stressful demands and may provide a useful, integrative perspective on the various correlates of late-life depressive symptoms. We interviewed 125 Rochester, NY adults, ranging in age from 67 to 94 years. We employed an allostatic load score as a measure of multisystem dysfunction in hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis function, immune function, anabolic activity, and cardiovascular activity. Overall, affective, and somatic depressive symptom scores were computed using the 20-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Multiple linear regression models were used to estimate associations between allostatic load scores and affective, somatic, and overall depressive symptoms. Among our sample of mean age 76.1 years, the one-week prevalence of clinically significant depressive symptoms was 12.8%. In models adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, and health-related factors, higher allostatic load scores were associated with elevated scores for overall, affective, and somatic depressive symptoms: beta = 1.21 (95% CI = 0.38, 2.05); beta = 0.14 (95% CI = 0.040, 0.24); beta = 0.60 (95% CI = 0.23, 0.97), respectively. Our results suggest that allostatic load measure is associated with late-life depressive symptoms. This association appears to be of clinical significance, as the magnitude of the effect size was comparable (but opposite in direction) to that of antidepressant use. Future research should examine the inter-relationships of allostatic load, psychological stress, and late-life depressive symptoms.

HPA axis and aging in depression: systematic review and meta-analysis

One of the most consistent findings in the biology of depression is an altered activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. However, data concerning this issue have never been examined with a focus on the older population. Here we present a systematic review and meta-analysis, based on studies investigating levels of cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) in depressed participants older than 60 and compared with healthy controls. We found 20 studies, for a total of 43 comparisons on different indices of HPA axis functioning. Depression had a significant effect (Hedges' g) on basal cortisol levels measured in the morning (0.89), afternoon (0.83) and night (1.39), but a smaller effect on cortisol measured continuously (0.51). The effect of depression was even higher on post-dexamethasone cortisol levels (3.22), whereas it was non-significant on morning ACTH and CRH levels. Subgroup analyses indicated that various methodological and clinical factors can influence the study results. Overall, older participants suffering from depression show a high degree of dysregulation of HPA axis activity, with differences compared with younger adults. This might depend on several mechanisms, including physical illnesses, alterations in the CNS and immune-endocrinological alterations. Further studies are needed to clarify the implications of altered HPA axis activity in older patients suffering from depression. Novel pharmacological approaches might be effective in targeting this pathophysiological feature, thus improving the clinical outcomes.

Cortisol profile and depressive symptoms in older adults residing in Brazil and in Canada

BACKGROUND AND AIM

How cortisol, a stress biological marker, differs according to depressive symptoms has mostly been examined in high-income countries. Including low- and middle-income countries in research on this matter would allow examining a wider range of exposure to adversity and improving the estimates of the associations between diurnal cortisol and depression. The aim of this study is to compare the profile of diurnal cortisol and depressive symptoms in 65- to 74-year-old residents of Santa Cruz (in an underdeveloped region, northeast Brazil, n = 64) and Saint-Bruno (a suburban area, QC, Canada, n = 60).

METHODS

Home interviews included assessments of socioeconomic variables, health behaviors, depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) and Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR: awakening, 30, 60 min afterward), and at 1500 hours and bedtime from saliva collected over 2 days. Mixed linear models were used to estimate the associations between diurnal cortisol and depressive symptoms.

RESULTS

Santa Cruz residents had lower cortisol levels upon awakening (β = -1.24, p = 0.04) and elevated bedtime levels (β = 20.29, p < 0.001) indicating chronic stress compared to Saint-Bruno residents. Elevated depressive symptoms were associated with a blunted CAR (flatter slope, indicative of chronic stress) in Santa Cruz residents (β = -0.19, p = 0.04), while greater diurnal cortisol levels (larger area under the curve), indicative of moderate stress, were observed in Saint-Bruno residents (β = 1.96, p = 0.047).

CONCLUSION

Adverse living conditions in this remote area of Brazil may lead to a state of chronic stress and a different relationship with elevated depressive symptoms from persons aging in a Canadian suburban area.

The association between self-reported daily hassles and cortisol levels in depression and anxiety in community living older adults

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to assess whether the association, in a naturalistic setting, between daily hassles and diurnal salivary cortisol differs in the presence of depression and anxiety in older adults.

METHODS

Data were assessed in a large representative community sample of older adults (n = 1760). A multinomial analysis was used to study as an outcome variable: no disorder, depression only, anxiety only and depression and anxiety, as a function of daily hassles and cortisol levels controlling for age, gender and time of saliva collection. Multivariate regression analyses were also carried out to test the association between daily hassles and cortisol levels stratified by depression and anxiety status.

RESULTS

A significant positive association was observed between the number of daily hassles reported and cortisol levels in participants with no depression and no anxiety and in participants with anxiety. Participants without depression and anxiety, and those with depression only, had significant lower cortisol levels later in the day. This was not observed in respondents with anxiety.

CONCLUSION

Stressors such as daily hassles are associated with cortisol secretion in depression and anxiety in older adults in a large epidemiologic setting.

Dysregulated diurnal cortisol pattern is associated with glucocorticoid resistance in women with major depressive disorder

Dysfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is believed to play a role in the pathophysiology of depression. To investigate mechanisms that may underlie this effect, we examined several indices of HPA axis function - specifically, diurnal cortisol slope, cortisol awakening response, and suppression of cortisol release following dexamethasone administration - in 26 pre-menopausal depressed women and 23 never depressed women who were matched for age and body mass index. Salivary cortisol samples were collected at waking, 30 min after waking, and at bedtime over three consecutive days. On the third day, immediately after the bedtime sample, participants ingested a 0.5mg dexamethasone tablet; they then collected cortisol samples at waking and 30 min after waking the following morning. As predicted, depressed women exhibited flatter diurnal cortisol rhythms and more impaired suppression of cortisol following dexamethasone administration than non-depressed women over the three sampling days. In addition, flatter diurnal cortisol slopes were associated with reduced cortisol response to dexamethasone treatment, both for all women and for depressed women when considered separately. Finally, greater self-reported depression severity was associated with flatter diurnal cortisol slopes and with less dexamethasone-related cortisol suppression for depressed women. Depression in women thus appears to be characterized by altered HPA axis functioning, as indexed by flatter diurnal cortisol slopes and an associated impaired sensitivity of cortisol to dexamethasone. Given that altered HPA axis functioning has been implicated in several somatic conditions, the present findings may be relevant for understanding the pathophysiology of both depression and depression-related physical disease.