Salivary alpha-amylase recently has been identified as a stress-related biomarker for autonomic nervous system activity. This study addresses sample collection and handling considerations for field researchers. Saliva was collected by unstimulated passive drool from 14 adults and pooled. Incubation of pooled saliva at 22 or 37 degrees C for 21 days did not diminish amylase activity. However, sodium azide added at concentrations

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Among children in Tanzania, a single elevated CRP does not predict poor growth functioning. Elevated CRP is associated with individual, caretaker, household, and community-level variables. Future work should strive to measure local biologies in more nuanced ways.

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This study tested associations among parenting stress prior to a child's kindergarten entry, the sustainability of family routines, and biomarkers of stress among parents following the kindergarten transition. Parents (N ¼ 51) with higher prekindergarten scores on the Parenting Stress Index Short Form reported lower Family Routines Inventory scores following school entry relative to their baseline. Declining family routines, in turn, were associated following kindergarten entry with greater 5-day mean and variance in evening cortisol, and higher C-reactive protein, an inflammatory mediator. However, only the cortisol findings remained significant controlling for baseline physiology. These findings support a family systems, social-ecological approach to life course development, wherein even mild challenges posed by children's normative transitions may reveal differences in parents' biobehavioral functioning.