Effect of academic psychological stress in post-graduate students: The modulatory role of cortisol on superoxide release by neutrophils

Abstract

Experimental and clinical evidence shows that neutrophils play an important role in the mechanism of tissue injury in immune complex diseases through the generation of reactive oxygen species. In this study, we examined the influence of academic psychological stress in post-graduate students on the capacity of their blood neutrophils to release superoxide when stimulated by immune complexes bound to nonphagocytosable surfaces and investigated the modulatory effect of cortisol on this immune function. The tests were performed on the day before the final examination. The state-trait anxiety inventory questionnaire was used to examine whether this stressful event caused emotional distress. In our study, the psychological stress not only increased plasma cortisol concentration, but it also provoked a reduction in superoxide release by neutrophils. This decrease in superoxide release was accompanied by diminished mRNA expression for subunit p47(phox) of the phagocyte superoxide-generating nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-oxidase. These inhibitory effects were also observed by in vitro exposure of neutrophils from control volunteers to 10(- 7) M hydrocortisone, and could be prevented by the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist RU-486. These results show that in a situation of psychological stress, the increased levels of cortisol could inhibit superoxide release by neutrophils stimulated by IgG immune complexes bound to nonphagocytosable surfaces, which could attenuate the inflammatory state.

Serum Leptin and Cortisol, Related to Acutely Perceived Academic Examination Stress and Performance in Female University Students

“…The present finding on the effects of examination stress on serum cortisol levels differ from earlier studies in many aspects. Firstly, whereas other studies reported hypercortisolism in association with the examination stress (Bardi et al 2011;Ignacchiti et al 2011;Kamezaki et al 2012;Katsuura et al 2012), the present study also investigated changes in cortisol levels due to subjective differences in the perception of academic examination stress. We assessed subjective differences in the perception of examination stress with a self-report measure and found that most students were in mild or moderate stress and the greater was the perception of stress more were the increases in HPA axis activation (Figs.…”

“…Moreover, there can be enormous variability among individuals in physiological reactions and basal levels of cortisol may also differ among individuals despite lack of differences in perceived stress. Compared with previous studies measuring circulating levels of cortisol on the day of examination (Bardi et al 2011;Ignacchiti et al 2011), we also monitored cortisol response in the beginning of academic session to compare it with the response on the day of examination (Fig. 1).…”

Severe Life Stress and Oxidative Stress in the Brain: From Animal Models to Human Pathology

“…In phagocytes, an inhibitory effect of the HPA axis on the NADPHderived oxidative stress has been reported. Thus, hydrocortisone has been shown to inhibit the generation of NOXderived superoxide and to suppress the expression of the p47 phox subunit (78,117,169). Similarly, in human aortic smooth muscle cells, an inhibitory effect of glucocorticoids on superoxide production and on the mRNA expression of the p22 phox subunit has been described in (111).…”

Isolation of healthy individuals' and rheumatoid arthritis patients' peripheral blood neutrophils by the gelatin and Ficoll-Hypaque methods: Comparative efficiency and impact on the neutrophil oxidative metabolism and Fcγ receptor expression

“…Interestingly, the level of FcγR and complement receptor expression, as well as the functional responsiveness of neutrophils from patients with rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and Graves' disease obtained by the gelatin method can be distinguished from those of healthy individuals' neutrophils in the resting state (Marzocchi-Machado et al, 2002;Russo-Carbolante et al, 2005;Paoliello-Paschoalato et al, 2011). Neutrophils from students under psychological stress, isolated by the gelatin method, displayed reduced level of superoxide anion production and mRNA expression for the p47 phox subunit of the NADPH oxidase complex, in comparison to control individuals (Ignacchiti et al, 2011). Stie and Jesaitis (2004) have reported that the gelatin method primes neutrophils and induces the release of secretory vesicles; however, these authors processed a large blood volume (500 mL) and used ice-cold erythrocyte lysing solutions, which probably affected the neutrophil activation state.…”