Adaptation of Opioid Systems to Stress

Abstract

The reaction of biological systems to stressors has often been utilized for the elucidation of neuronal and endocrine control functions of the organism. Stress might be defined as a response to sufficiently intense or frequent environmental stimuli, and the consequence of the reaction. It results in a wide range of biological responses including changes in brain neuronal activity and behavior, as well as in functional alterations of the endocrine. cardiovascular, and immune systems. Furthermore, repeated stress may be involved in the pathophysiology and etiology of some functional disorders.