Diurnal cortisol rhythms in Tsimane’ Amazonian foragers: New insights into ecological HPA axis research

Nyberg, Colleen

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.06.002

Cited by 26 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 141 publications

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“…Analytically, these measures represent interrelated but distinct aspects of the psychobiology of stress and the stress response: i.e., the HPA axis and the sympathetic nervous system (64)(65)(66)88). Salivary analytes such as these are increasingly used to assess psychosomatic stress in non-WEIRD contexts, thus providing both methods and interpretive frameworks for our own research (9,16,69,(89)(90)(91)(92)(93)(94)(95). Alongside the two physiological analytes, we also elicited responses from Sahariya to the Bradford Somatic Index (BSI) (96), a psychiatric scale validated to capture mental health disorders among South Asian populations.…”

Section: Research Hypotheses and Analytical Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress and telomere shortening among central Indian conservation refugees

Zahran

Snodgrass

Maranon

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Research links psychosocial stress to premature telomere shortening and accelerated human aging; however, this association has only been demonstrated in so-called "WEIRD" societies (Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic), where stress is typically lower and life expectancies longer. By contrast, we examine stress and telomere shortening in a non-Western setting among a highly stressed population with overall lower life expectancies: poor indigenous people-the Sahariya-who were displaced (between 1998 and 2002) from their ancestral homes in a central Indian wildlife sanctuary. In this setting, we examined adult populations in two representative villages, one relocated to accommodate the introduction of Asiatic lions into the sanctuary (n = 24 individuals), and the other newly isolated in the sanctuary buffer zone after their previous neighbors were moved (n = 22). Our research strategy combined physical stress measures via the salivary analytes cortisol and α-amylase with self-assessments of psychosomatic stress, ethnographic observations, and telomere length assessment [telomere-fluorescence in situ hybridization (TEL-FISH) coupled with 3D imaging of buccal cell nuclei], providing high-resolution data amenable to multilevel statistical analysis. Consistent with expectations, we found significant associations between each of our stress measures-the two salivary analytes and the psychosomatic symptom survey-and telomere length, after adjusting for relevant behavioral, health, and demographic traits. As the first study (to our knowledge) to link stress to telomere length in a non-WEIRD population, our research strengthens the case for stress-induced telomere shortening as a pancultural biomarker of compromised health and aging.telomeres | stress | India | indigenous peoples | human displacement P sychosocial stress is associated with elevated risk for a range of human diseases and curtailment of human life expectancy (1-16). Telomeres-repetitive and stabilizing features of chromosomal termini that cap and protect them-have also been shown to be associated with aging and disease (17)(18)(19). Telomere length erodes normally with cell division and generally with aging, triggering cellular senescence once telomere length eclipses a threshold, contributing to tissue degeneration and organ decline with longevity (20-25). Given evidence that stress can elevate the risk of human mortality, and that premature telomere shortening can serve as a proxy for increased risk of disease and mortality, it is reasonable to posit that stress is also associated with telomere shortening (23,26,27). Indeed, research provides evidence of telomere shortening in a range of stress-inducing life situations, including among primary caregivers of chronically ill children and Alzheimer's patients (28, 29), children spending more time in orphanages or experiencing other forms of neglect and adversity (30-32), women suffering from intimate partner violence (33), patients suffering from stress-related mood disorders (34, 35), and...

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Section: Research Hypotheses and Analytical Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stress and telomere shortening among central Indian conservation refugees

Zahran

Snodgrass

Maranon

et al. 2015

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Although this cultural difference could be attributed to the loss of traditional culture in most aboriginal groups, it could also be attributed to the lack of job opportunity and, therefore, the risk of boredom. Conversely, mean basal cortisol levels from the Tsimane Amazonian adult foragers were lower compared to the population of the CARDIA study, an important United States study [12], [25]. Even though abovementioned findings were not based on cross-country comparisons the authors stated that research should consider an integrative approach, including for example early social exposures, infectious disease loads, and nutritional and energetic status, to better understand these differences between studies performed in different countries.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…With some exceptions, a few studies have been conducted to investigate the cortisol profile in non-developed country populations [22]–[25] and it is still difficult to determine whether the adaptive stress response is dysfunctional and/or whether there exists a relationship between this dysfunctional stress response and any chronic conditions in these populations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cross-Country Differences in Basal and Stress-Induced Cortisol Secretion in Older Adults

et al. 2014

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ObjectiveSeveral studies have emphasized the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and inadequate response of the biological stress system. However, other factors related to SES are rarely considered, such as cultural values, social norms, organization, language and communication skills, which raises the need to investigate cross-country differences in stress response. Although some studies have shown differences in cortisol levels between immigrants and natives, there is no cross-country evidence regarding cortisol levels in country-native elders. This is particularly important given the high prevalence of stress-related disorders across nations during aging. The current study examined basal diurnal and reactive cortisol levels in healthy older adults living in two different countries.MethodsSalivary cortisol of 260 older adults from Canada and Brazil were nalyzed. Diurnal cortisol was measured in saliva samples collected at home throughout two working days at awakening, 30 min after waking, 1400 h, 1600 h and before bedtime. Cortisol reactivity was assessed in response to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) in both populations.ResultsOur results showed that even under similar health status, psychological and cognitive characteristics, Brazilian elders exhibited higher basal and stress-induced cortisol secretion compared to the Canadian participants.ConclusionThese findings suggest that country context may modulate cortisol secretion and could impact the population health.

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“…It is also well established that baseline GCs show a diel rhythm in temperate-breeding vertebrates (including in humans). Levels peak prior to sunrise in anticipation of active periods (Breuner et al, 1999;Malisch et al, 2008;Mohawk et al, 2007;Nyberg, 2012;Romero and Remage-Healey, 2000), which helps to stimulate waking (Breuner et al, 1999;Carere et al, 2003) and foraging . Following morning peaks, plasma GCs usually decline and remain low throughout the remainder of the day (Breuner et al, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%