Expressed emotion and attributions in the carers of patients with Alzheimer's disease: The effect on carer burden.

Burden of care, expressed emotion (EE), causal attributions, and salivary cortisol were assessed in 100 carers of patients with Alzheimer's disease. Forty-one carers were rated high EE, which was associated with higher scores of carer distress and strain, and greater reports of noncognitive features in the patient, but not with cortisol levels. High EE carers made more attributions personal to, and controllable by, the patient for negative events. Critical carers made more attributions of the patient's behavior that was idiosyncratic. Warmth toward the patient was associated with the opposite of this pattern. Overinvolved carers made attributions of the patient's behavior to causes external to the patient and internal to themselves. Cortisol levels were associated with self-reports of strain and distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Physical health problems, depressive mood, and cortisol secretion in old age: Buffer effects of health engagement control strategies.

Objective: This study examined the protective role played by control behaviors aimed at overcoming physical health problems (health engagement control strategies; HECS) in the associations between older adults' physical health problems, depressive mood, and diurnal cortisol secretion. It was expected that adaptive levels of HECS would buffer the adverse effects of physical health problems on depressive mood and diurnal cortisol secretion. Design and Measures: Physical health problems and HECS were measured in a cross-sectional sample of 215 community-dwelling older adults. In addition, participants' depressive mood and patterns of diurnal cortisol secretion were assessed across 3 days. Results: The findings demonstrate that physical health problems predicted high levels of depressive mood and diurnal cortisol secretion, but only among older adults who reported low levels of HECS (and not among older adults who reported high levels of HECS). Moreover, depressive mood completely mediated the buffering effect of HECS on the association between physical health problems and cortisol secretion. Conclusion: The results suggest that adaptive levels of HECS represent a psychological mechanism that can protect older adults from experiencing the adverse emotional and biological consequences of physical health problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

功能性膳食补充对慢性情绪应激大鼠的影响

本文研究了功能性膳食补充对慢性应激状态下大鼠行为学、血清皮质醇和血浆儿茶酚胺等指标的干预作用。40只大鼠分为正常组、模型组、功能性膳食补充高剂量组和低剂量组。除正常组外,其余各组利用空瓶刺激诱发情绪应激,功能性膳食补充组连续灌服7 d,正常组与模型组灌服等容积蒸馏水。通过高架十字迷宫实验观察各组大鼠的行为学变化,同时检测各组大鼠血清皮质醇和血浆儿茶酚胺的水平。结果显示,与空白对照组比较,模型组大鼠进入开臂的次数百分比和时间百分比都极显著减少(p<0.01),血清皮质醇和血浆儿茶酚胺含量极显著升高(p<0.01);与模型组比较,功能性膳食补充极显著增加了大鼠进入开臂的次数百分比和时间百分比(p<0.01),并且血清皮质醇显著下降(p<0.05),血浆儿茶酚胺水平也有所回升,但无显著性。实验结果表明,功能性膳食补充能够缓解慢性情绪应激引起的大鼠行为学异常。      

Stress facilitates consolidation of verbal memory for a film but does not affect retrieval.

The effect of psychosocial stress on distinct memory processes was investigated in 157 college students using a brief film, which enabled comparison of verbal and visual memory by using a single complex stimulus. Participants were stressed either following stimuli presentation (consolidation) or before testing 48 hr later (retrieval) and were compared with no-stress controls. Salivary cortisol was measured before and 20 min after stress. The consolidation group significantly outperformed controls on total and verbal film scores. Stress did not impair retrieval relative to controls. Exploratory analyses revealed a significant correlation between cortisol and verbal scores across all groups (r = .18). Results provide the first evidence of a facilitative effect of a stressor on verbal memory, but failed to replicate retrieval findings. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Anxiogenic-like effect of chronic corticosterone in the light-dark emergence task in mice.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 120(6) of Behavioral Neuroscience (see record 2006-22387-011). In the article "Anxiogenic-Like Effect of Chronic Corticosterone in the Light-Dark Emergence Task in Mice," by Paul Ardayfio and Kwang-Soo Kim (Behaviorial Neuroscience, 2006, Vol. 120, No. 2, pp. 249-256), the measurement unit of the corticosterone concentration on p. 250 (under the Drugs heading) was incorrect. The correct unit is μg/ml. The corrected sentence follows: "Corticosterone (Sigma, St. Louis, MO) was dissolved in ethanol, diluted, and administered via the drinking water at a final concentration of 0 or 35 μg/ml in 0.3% ethanol."] Chronic hypercortisolemia is a hallmark of neuroendocrine and psychiatric disorders, such as Cushing's disease and depression. Whether cortisol directly contributes to the altered mood and anxiety symptoms seen in these diseases remains unclear. To address this, the authors have modeled hypercortisolemia by administering corticosterone in the drinking water of female Swiss Webster mice for 17 or 18 days (13 mg/kg). Light-dark emergence, startle habituation, and startle reactivity were measured. Chronic but not acute treatment with corticosterone increased the latency to emerge into the light compartment, an anxiogenic-like effect. Chronic corticosterone treatment did not affect startle habituation, but did reduce startle reactivity. This study suggests that chronic hypercortisolemia may contribute to anxiety-related behavior in patients with Cushing's disease and depression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Associations between immune competence,stress responsiveness,and production in Holstein-Friesian and Holstein-Friesian × Jersey heifers reared in a pasture-based production system in Australia

The objectives of this study were to assess antibody and cellular immune responses in first-lactation dairy heifers reared under a pasture-based production system and to investigate associations between immune competence and stress responsiveness, health, and productivity. A commercial vaccine was used to induce antibody and cellular immune responses and, based on measured responses, animals were classified as above average, average, and below average for each trait independently and in combination (overall immune competence). Overall immune competence phenotypic rankings were generated by combining standardized residual values for antibody and cellular responses measured in individual heifers. Cortisol responses to handling and yarding were used to assess stress responsiveness, worm egg counts were used to assess internal parasite burden, somatic cell counts to assess udder health and estimates of total daily milk volume, and milk fat and milk protein contents to assess productivity. A total of 393 Holstein-Friesian and Holstein-Friesian × Jersey crossbred heifers from 2 herds practicing seasonal calving in a pasture-fed production system were enrolled in the study. The immune competence phenotypes of individual heifers were assessed before their first mating and their subsequent performance during their first lactation was monitored. Animals with below-average antibody and cellular immune competence had higher serum cortisol concentrations compared with their counterparts following handling, suggesting they had a reduced ability to cope with management-induced stress. Furthermore, a significant negative (favorable) correlation was observed between antibody responses and stress responsiveness. Similarly, correlations between antibody responses and internal parasite burden were significant and negative (favorable). No correlations were observed between overall immune competence and milk yield, milk fat, and milk protein content.     

阿立哌唑联合草酸艾司西酞普兰对重度抑郁患者多巴胺、5-羟色胺和皮质醇的影响研究

目的:探讨阿立哌唑联合草酸艾司西酞普兰对重度抑郁患者多巴胺（DA）、5-羟色胺（5-HT）和皮质醇的影响。方法:将94例重度抑郁症患者分为观察组和对照组。对照组采用草酸艾司西酞普兰治疗。观察组采用阿立哌唑联合草酸艾司西酞普兰治疗。采用汉密尔顿焦虑量表（HAMD-17）评估患者的抑郁状态。检测两组患者治疗前后DA、5-HT、皮质醇的水平。采用健康状况问卷（SF-36）评估患者的生存质量，包括生理功能、躯体疼痛、生理职能、精神健康、情感职能、生命活力、社会功能、总体健康。观察两组患者治疗过程中不良反应的发生情况。结果:观察组的有效率比对照组高，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）；两组治疗后的皮质醇、HAMD-17评分显著降低，DA、5-HT显著升高，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）；观察组治疗后的皮质醇、HAMD-17评分低于对照组，DA、5-HT高于对照组，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）；两组治疗后的生理功能、躯体疼痛、生理职能、精神健康、情感职能、生命活力、社会功能、总体健康显著升高，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）；观察组治疗后的生理功能、躯体疼痛、生理职能、精神健康、情感职能、生命活力、社会功能、总体健康高于对照组，差异有统计学意义（P<0.05）。两组的不良反应发生率差异无统计学意义（P>0.05）。结论:阿立哌唑可进一步调节重度抑郁患者DA、5-HT和皮质醇的水平，提高临床疗效，改善生存质量。     

Anticipatory stress influences decision making under explicit risk conditions.

Recent research has suggested that stress may affect memory, executive functioning, and decision making on the basis of emotional feedback processing. The current study examined whether anticipatory stress affects decision making measured with the Game of Dice Task (GDT), a decision-making task with explicit and stable rules that taps both executive functioning and feedback learning. The authors induced stress in 20 participants by having them anticipate giving a public speech and also examined 20 comparison subjects. The authors assessed the level of stress with questionnaires and endocrine markers (salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase), both revealing that speech anticipation led to increased stress. Results of the GDT showed that participants under stress scored significantly lower than the comparison group and that GDT performance was negatively correlated with the increase of cortisol. Our results indicate that stress can lead to disadvantageous decision making even when explicit and stable information about outcome contingencies is provided. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Children's objective and subjective sleep disruptions: Links with afternoon cortisol levels.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine possible relations between the quality and amount of children's sleep and cortisol in healthy children. Design: Children's sleep was monitored with actigraphs for 7 nights. Children came to the laboratory to provide saliva samples, which were used to assess cortisol. Children reported on their sleepiness and sleep/wake problems. Sixty-four healthy children participated (M = 8.75 years; SD = .55). Main Outcome Measures: Self-reported sleepiness and sleep/wake problems, actigraphy-measured total sleep minutes, sleep efficiency, minutes awake after sleep onset, and sleep activity, and afternoon cortisol levels. Results: After controlling for demographic variables and child characteristics, higher levels of cortisol were related to increased subjective sleep problems and objective measures of shorter sleep duration and poorer sleep quality. Conclusion: These findings are of importance for understanding critical facets of children's health and well-being, and are noteworthy given the high prevalence of sleep disruptions in otherwise normally developing children in the United States. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)