Psychostimulants such as methamphetamine (MA) induce significant alterations in the function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. These changes in HPA axis function are associated with altered stress-related behaviors and might contribute to addictive processes such as relapse. In this mini-review we discuss acute and chronic effects of MA (adult and developmental exposure) on the ...

Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in adults with major depressive disorder is among the most consistent and robust biological findings in psychiatry. Given the importance of the adolescent transition to the development and recurrence of depressive phenomena over the lifespan, it is important to have an integrative perspective on research investigating the various co...

Dysregulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) is seen in numerous mental disorders. Data of HPA axis disturbance in panic disorder are inconsistent. In panic disorder HPA axis hyperactivity has been observed with elevated cortisol levels. However, hypocortisolism has also been noted. Salivary cortisol as a biomarker of HPA-axis activity has received special attention. The aim of th...

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis hormones and their receptors expressed in the skin are known to function locally, but how these hormones affect the maintenance of skin homeostasis or the pathogenesis of skin diseases is not fully understood. We comprehensively reviewed the distribution and function of the central and peripheral HPA axis in various stress-related skin diseases. Previou...

Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may play a role in panic disorder. HPA studies in patients with panic disorder, however, have produced inconsistent results. Seeking to understand the inconsistencies, we reexamined endocrine data from four studies of patients with panic disorder, in light of animal data highlighting the salience of novelty, control, and social supp...

BACKGROUND Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis is thought to underlie stress-related psychiatric disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Some studies have reported HPA-axis dysregulation in trauma-exposed (TE) adults in the absence of psychiatric morbidity. In this dissertation we set out to unravel part of the mechanism that underlies the complex rela...

Chronic stress can affect skin function, and some skin diseases might be triggered or aggravated by stress. Stress can activate the central hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis, which causes glucocorticoid levels to increase. The skin has HPA axis elements that react to environmental stressors to regulate skin functions, such as melanogenesis. This study explores the mechanism where...

results all variables reached a peak at 1 minute post-jump. salivary alpha-amylase, galvanic skin responses and heart rate did not return to basal value at 90 minutes post-jump, while cortisol returned to basal value at 90 minutes post-jump. conclusions this evidence indicates that parachute jumping is accompanied by a dissociation of sns and hpa response patterns in novice parachutists, showin...

Human (visceral) obesity is associated with alterations hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis functioning. It is however not completely clear whether the HPA axis is causally or co-incidentally related to (visceral) obesity. This review summarizes supporting data of an involvement of the HPA axis in the development of (visceral) obesity. First, several DNA polymorphisms related to HPA axis ...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Past studies in humans and animals have shown that low blood glucose concentrations due to fasting negatively interfere with the ability to mount a hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis response to psychological stress or to pharmacological activation, respectively. This contradicts the classical view of the proposed primary glucocorticoid function of providing the individ...