The early processing of visual sexual stimuli shows signs of automaticity. Moreover, there is evidence for sex-specific patterns in cognitive and physiological responding to erotica. However, little is known about the time course of rapid pupillary responses to sexual stimuli and their correspondence with other measures of autonomic activity in women and men. To study pupil dilation as an implicit measure of sexual arousal at various stages of picture processing, we presented 35 heterosexual participants with pictures showing either erotic couples or single (male/female) erotic nudes, contrasted with people involved in everyday situations. Brightness-adjusted grayscale pictures were shown for a duration of 2,500 ms within the central visual field, alternating with perceptually matched patches. Left pupil diameter was recorded at 500 Hz using a video-based eye tracker. Skin conductance and heart rate were coregistered and correlated with latent components of pupil dilation (dissociated by temporal PCA). Whereas stimulus-evoked changes in pupil size indicated virtually no initial constriction, a rapid effect of appetence emerged (dilation to erotica within 500 ms). Responses at early stages of processing were remarkably consistent across both sexes. In contrast, later phases of pupil dilation, subjective ratings, and skin conductance responses showed a sex-specific pattern. Moreover, evidence for an association of early-onset pupil dilation and heart rate acceleration was found, suggestive of parasympathetic inhibition, whereas the late component was mainly related to sympathetically mediated skin conductance. Taken together, our results indicate that different temporal components of pupil responses to erotic stimuli may reflect divergent underlying neural mechanisms.

Background: Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a complex psychiatric condition with different subtypes and etiologies. Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACE) is an important risk factor for the development of MDD later in life. Evidence suggests that pro-inflammatory processes may convey this risk as both MDD and ACE have been related to increased levels of inflammation. In the present study, we aimed to disentangle the effects of MDD and ACE on inflammation levels.Methods: Markers of inflammation (plasma interleukin(IL)-6 and high sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) concentrations, white blood cell (WBC) count and a composite inflammation score (CIS) combining all three) were assessed in 23 MDD patients with ACE, 23 MDD patients without ACE, 21 healthy participants with ACE, and 21 healthy participants without ACE (mean age: 35 ± 11 (SD) years). None of the patients and participants was taking psychotropic medication. ACE was assessed with the Early Trauma Inventory (ETI) and was defined as moderate to severe exposure to sexual or physical abuse.Results: Group differences in the different inflammatory measures were observed. MDD patients with ACE showed significantly higher IL-6 concentrations (p = 0.018), higher WBC counts (p = 0.003) and increased general inflammation levels as indicated by the CIS (p = 0.003) compared to healthy controls. In contrast, MDD patients without ACE displayed similar inflammation levels to the control group (p = 0.93).Conclusion: We observed elevated inflammation in MDD patients with a history of ACE, which could indicate a subtype of “inflammatory depression”. Accordingly, MDD patients with ACE might potentially benefit from anti-inflammatory therapies.

Individuals tend to make riskier decisions in response to stress. The magnitude of the stress effect on decision-making under risk seems to depend on the stressor type and the decision situation. We examined the effects of physiological and combined physiological and psychosocial stress on decision-making under risk and whether risk taking differs between women and men. Ninety female (n = 45) and male (n = 45) students completed a decision-making under risk task with explicit probabilities and without feedback after exposure to physiological (Cold Pressor Test, CPT), combined physiological and psychosocial (Socially Evaluated Cold Pressor Test, SECPT), or no stress (Warm Water Test, WWT). Subjective stress ratings, salivary cortisol, blood pressure, and heart rate indicated increased stress reactions to the CPT and SECPT compared with the WWT. We found no effect of condition, indicating no difference in risk taking between the CPT, SECPT, and WWT. We did find a sex effect, showing that men made riskier decisions compared with women. Unexpectedly, a Condition × Sex interaction indicated increased risk taking in men compared with women in reaction to the CPT and in women in reaction to the SECPT compared with the WWT. In summary, our results suggest that the sex of the individuum making the decision in combination with the stressor type influence decisions made under risk.