The reactive scope model — A new model integrating homeostasis, allostasis, and stress

Romero, L. Michael; Dickens, Molly J.; Cyr, Nicole E.

doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2008.12.009

Cited by 912 publications

(882 citation statements)

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“…Although we were unable to examine statistically interactions between corticosterone and the treatment on the likelihood of 15 survival, since we measured hormone levels in a relatively small number of birds compared to the total sample size, we speculate that such moderate, but repeated and protracted, HPA axis stimulation generated by unpredictable food supply had a key role in driving the beneficial effects on longevity. Glucocorticoids are known to exert permissive and preparative actions that can altogether aid organisms in adapting to a chronic stressor (Sapolski et al 2000;Romero et al 2009). There may be U-shaped relationships between glucocorticoids and survival, with a threshold below which HPA axis stimulation can promote health and longevity, and above which detrimental effects may arise (Pravosudov et al 2001;Brown et al 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repeated exposure to stressful conditions can have beneficial effects on survival

Marasco

Boner

Heidinger

et al. 2015

Experimental Gerontology

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Repeated exposure to stressful circumstances is generally thought to be associated with increased pathology and reduced longevity. However, growing lines of evidence suggest that the effects of environmental stressors on survival and longevity depend on a multitude of factors and, under some circumstances, might be positive rather than negative. Here, using the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), we show that repeated exposure to stressful conditions (i.e. unpredictable food availability), which induced no changes in body mass, was associated with a decrease in mortality rate and an increase in the age of death. As expected, the treated birds responded to the unpredictable food supply by increasing baseline glucocorticoid stress hormone secretion and there were no signs of habituation of this hormonal response to the treatment across time. Importantly, and consistent with previous literature, the magnitude of hormone increase induced by the treatment was significant, but relatively mild, since the baseline glucocorticoid concentrations in the treated birds were substantially lower than the peak levels that occur during an acute stress response in this species. Taken together, these data demonstrate that protracted exposure to relatively mild stressful circumstances can have beneficial lifespan effects.Key-words. Chronic stress, unpredictable food availability, glucocorticoids, corticosterone, HPA axis, hormesis. IntroductionProtracted or repeated exposure to stressful stimuli, such as those experienced by individuals living in uncontrollable or highly unstable environments, can have wide ranging effects on animal physiology, but the extent to which these effects are adaptive is the subject of considerate debate (Broonstra 2013). In vertebrates, one of the main systems mediating responses to stressful environmental conditions is the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis (HPA axis), which regulates both basal production and transient surges of circulating glucocorticoid stress hormones. Transient increases in circulating glucocorticoids are a highly conserved component of the vertebrate stress response and play a key role in initiating an array of metabolic changes intended to mobilise energy, including hepatic gluconeogenesis and inhibition of glucose uptake by peripheral tissues . These changes are thought to be vital for promoting short-term survival (Wingfield et al. 1998;Sapolsky 2000). At the same time, dynamic changes in basal level of glucocorticoids, such as those occurring across differing seasons within the same year in a variety of free-living vertebrate species, are also thought to be critical for survival (Romero 2002). Over a longer time scale, however, the repeated activation of the HPA axis may lead to a dysregulation and dysfunction of the stress axis (Sapolsky 2000).The predominant view is that repeated stress exposure, and the consequent prolonged elevation of glucocorticoid levels, is harmful since it can induce a large variety of downstream negative effects, including impairment of brai...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repeated exposure to stressful conditions can have beneficial effects on survival

Marasco

Boner

Heidinger

et al. 2015

Experimental Gerontology

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“…Musculoskeletal ailments have also been associated with another form of allostatic loaddHPA axis hyporesponsivenessdwherein low cortisol responses to stress allow increased secretion of inflammatory cytokines that promote autoimmune and other inflammatory diseases, many of which affect the musculoskeletal system (Boscarino, 2004;McEwen, 1998). Although a growing body of animal and human studies provides evidence consistent with the allostatic load theory (Lupien, McEwen, Gunnar, & Heim, 2009), alternative models have also been proposed (e.g., Romero, Dickens, & Cyr, 2009), in part due to the difficulty in measuring allostatic load directly (see Smith, Maloney, Falkenberg, Dimulescu, & Rajeevan, 2009). Despite theoretical differences regarding the specific mechanisms by which stress influences disease, the stressdisease relationship is widely accepted.…”

Section: Linking Psychological Stress and Physical Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health status and health care utilization following collective trauma: A 3-year national study of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States

Holman

Silver

2011

Social Science & Medicine

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a b s t r a c tThe September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks (9/11) presented a unique opportunity to assess the physical health impact of collective stress in the United States. This study prospectively examined rates of physical ailments and predictors of health care utilization in a U.S. nationally representative sample over three years following the attacks. A sample of adults (N ¼ 2592) completed a survey before 9/11/01 that assessed MD-diagnosed physical and mental health ailments. Follow-up surveys were administered at one (N ¼ 1923), two (N ¼ 1576), and three (N ¼ 1950) years post-9/11 to assess MD-diagnosed physical health ailments (e.g., cardiovascular, endocrine) and health care utilization. Reports of physical ailments increased 18% over three years following 9/11. 9/11-related exposure, lifetime and post-9/11 stress, MD-diagnosed depression/anxiety, smoking status, age, and female gender predicted increased incidence of post-9/11 ailments, after controlling for pre-9/11 health. After adjusting for covariates (demographics, somatization, smoking status, pre-9/11 mental and physical health, lifetime and post-9/11 stress, and degree of 9/11-related exposure), increases in MD-diagnosed cardiovascular, endocrine, gastrointestinal, and hematology-oncology ailments predicted greater utilization of health care services over two years. After the collective stress of 9/11, rates of physical ailments increased and predicted greater health care utilization in a U.S. national sample.

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“…When an internal and/or external environmental change occurs, the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis stimulates the secretion of GCs by the adrenal glands to help organism in responding to stressful conditions (McEwen & Wingfield, 2003; Wingfield, 2013; Wingfield & Ramenofsky, 1999; Wingfield & Romero, 2001; Wingfield & Sapolsky, 2003; Wingfield et al., 1997). Glucocorticoids are the final product of the HPA axis and participate in the control of homeostasis, activating immediate life‐saving processes (Romero, Dickens, & Cyr, 2009). Normally, short‐term glucocorticoid releases are helpful for individual survival because they stimulate both physiologic and behavioral emergency mechanisms, exclusively oriented to overcome the perturbation (Wingfield & Romero, 2001; Wingfield & Sapolsky, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Prolonged elevated concentrations could expose the individual to a long‐term overstimulation of survive mechanisms with consecutive inhibition of many fundamental functions including reproduction, growth, and immunocompetence (Dallman & Bhatnagar, 2001; Dhabhar, 2000; Sapolsky, 1987; Sapolsky et al., 2000; Wingfield et al., 1997). Therefore, persistent high levels are usually detrimental to health, as they may augment the stress‐related disease and pathology (Romero et al., 2009). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of parasitic infection and reproduction on corticosterone plasma levels in Galápagos land iguanas,Conolophus marthaeandC. subcristatus

Onorati

Sancesario²,

Pastore

et al. 2017

Ecology and Evolution

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In vertebrates, one main feature of stress response is the release of glucocorticoids (corticosterone in reptiles), steroid hormones whose synthesis is regulated by the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis (HPA). In the Galápagos Islands, populations of land iguanas are differentially impacted by a tick‐transmitted apicomplexan hemoparasite of genus Hepatozoon, which could cause diseases and ultimately reduce fitness. Using competitive enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), we examined baseline plasma corticosterone levels of two syntopic and highly parasitized populations of the land iguana species Conolophus marthae and C. subcristatus in Wolf volcano (Isabela Island). We also used a poorly parasitized population of C. subcristatus from the same island (Bahia Urbina) as a reference. To better interpret the observed glucocorticoids patterns, we simultaneously performed the count of white blood cells (WBCs) in all individuals and investigated the reproductive status of females. We did not find evidence in support of either a positive or negative relationship between the tick load, hemoparasite infection, and glucocorticoid plasma concentration in C. marthae and C. subcristatus at Wolf volcano. The comparison between parasitized and non‐parasitized sites (V. Wolf and Bahia Urbina) would instead suggest an inverse relationship between corticosterone and parasites. Our findings support association between corticosterone plasma levels and reproduction.

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The reactive scope model — A new model integrating homeostasis, allostasis, and stress

Cited by 912 publications

References 76 publications

Repeated exposure to stressful conditions can have beneficial effects on survival

Repeated exposure to stressful conditions can have beneficial effects on survival

Health status and health care utilization following collective trauma: A 3-year national study of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the United States

Effects of parasitic infection and reproduction on corticosterone plasma levels in Galápagos land iguanas,Conolophus marthaeandC. subcristatus

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