Stressful Episodes Research Articles

Are Subjective Benefits of Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Related to Changes in Cardiac and Cortical Responses to a Stress Task?

ObjectivesMindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) has been shown to decrease general feelings of distress. It is not known to what extent such beneficial effects are associated with attenuation of physiological responses to challenging psychological situations. The aim of the present study was to examine potential associations between general decreases in subjective distress and changes in acute cardiac and cortical responses during recall of a recent stressful episode between pre- and post-MBSR.MethodFifty-eight MBSR participants (77.6% female, mean age 43.8 years, SD = 13.1) took part in a laboratory examination before and after MBSR. Measurements of the electrocardiogram (ECG) and electroencephalogram (EEG) were performed during the whole protocol including the stress recall task.ResultsThe MBSR group showed overall decreases in general negative affect and an increase in heart rate variability from pre- to post-intervention. Out of six physiological outcomes (heart rate, heart rate variability, theta, alpha, beta, and gamma power at Fz), only a decreased response of gamma power during the stress task was significant. The subjective and physiological changes were unrelated.ConclusionsThe present results suggest that the favourable effects of MBSR on general stress reduction may not be clearly reflected in cortical electrical wave activity or vagal cardiac response during recall of a recent stressful episode. The few changes found in cardiac and cortical activity may be due to either effects independent of general subjective feelings or independent of the intervention altogether.PreregistrationThe study is not preregistered.

Features of mental states in representatives of different types of sports

The article analyzes the problem of finding psychological properties that determine high sports results in various types of sports activities, far from unequivocal conclusions. The analysis of literary data and the results of one's own research provide grounds for asserting that the endogenous factors of influence on mental states are the properties of nervous processes and temperament, and the exogenous factors of influence can be, in the case of a transactional process, the process of the subject's interaction with the environment. In the structure of the transactional process of a stressful episode, several elements can be distinguished: awareness of the stressor and its assessment; disruption of homeostasis, stress-related emotions and cognitive processes; coping reaction; the result of coping and a new assessment of the situation; personal factors. The analysis of the results of the own research of groups of athletes from various sports provides a basis for asserting that statistically significant differences in indicators of the state of mental tension, as well as reactive and personal anxiety, were not found in athletes - relievers. Research into the study of psychological mechanisms that determine the performance of top-level athletes and their evaluation criteria is considered promising in the future.

Chromium in the Diet of Dairy Calves: Benefits for Growth Performance, Feed Efficiency, Digestibility, and Health.

Chromium (Cr) is a mineral that helps animals subjected to stressful conditions. The suckling period is characterized by several stressful episodes, particularly during the first hours after birth and at weaning. There is little consumption of concentrate by calves in the first weeks of life; consequently, consuming any supplement added to feed would be negligible. Thus, the hypothesis was that the calves would take it in earlier if Cr were consumed in a milk replacer instead. Therefore, our study aimed to determine whether including organic Cr in calf feed (via milk replacer or concentrate) during the suckling phase would improve calf health and growth performance. Twenty-four male Holstein calves with an average age of 8 ± 4 days and 39.8 ± 6.9kg average body weight were used. Calves were randomly divided into three groups: (a) Chromium-Milk (CR-M), receiving 4mg Cr/animal/day via milk replacer during the 60 experimental days of suckling (n = 8); (b) Chromium-Concentrate (CR-C), receiving 4mg Cr/animal/day via concentrate (n = 8); (c) Control (C), animals that did not receive Chromium (n = 8). The experiment lasted 75 days, divided into two well-defined stages: suckling (1-60 days) and weaning (61-75 days). Body weight weekly, daily feed intake, and blood samples taken every two weeks during the experiment were evaluated. At the end of the experiment, the apparent digestibility evaluation was carried out, with the results of weight and consumption carried out, and a feed efficiency analysis was carried out. It was observed that the inclusion of organic Cr (regardless of whether it was milk or concentrate) increased body weight gain (kg) for the CR-C group: 41.8kg, CR-M: 40.4kg compared to the C: 34.2kg (p = 0.01). The protein digestibility was higher in the CR-M group (52%, p = 0.05). Cr consumption increased Cr concentrations in the serum of the calves and was higher in the first week in the animals in the CR-M group. This did not happen for the C group; however, with higher concentrate consumption, Cr concentrations increased and remained high until the end of the experiment. Glucose concentrations were higher in the groups that consumed Cr. Total protein concentrations were higher in the CR-M and CR-C groups than in group C. Immunoglobulin A concentrations were higher in groups CR-C and CR-M than in group C (days 40 and 60). In conclusion, the adding Cr to calf feed improves their health, indirectly favors growth performance, and increases protein digestibility.

Sex features of the development of oxidative stress in high and low hypoxic resistancy rats, which experienced repeated stressful episodes of immobilization.

Aim: of the study was to find out the sexual characteristics of the development of oxidative stress in rats with high and low resistance to hypoxic hypoxia (HRH, LRH) during repeated stressful episodes of immobilization.. Materials and Methods: The study was performed on 96 white HRH, LRH male and female Wistar rats. The animals were divided into eight groups: 1 - control (HRH, LRH) males and females, 2 - immobilization (HRH, LRH) males and females. Immobilization stress was induced by gently restraining the animals four Times by all paws and maxillary central incisors dorsally for 1 hour at an interval of 72 hours. The concentration of diene and triene conjugates (DC, TC), Schiff's bases (SB), TBA-active products (TBA-ap), activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH), activity of glutathione peroxidase (GP) and glutathione reductase (GR) were determined in the homogenate of heart. A morphological study of heart preparations stained with hematoxilin and eosin was carried out. All studies were performed in control, after 24 hours after last immobilization. Results: In control HRH, compared to LRH males, the values of TBA-ap were found to be lower. Under stress, an increase of LPO was noted in HRH and LRH males, only SB decreased. Higher level of LPO products noted in LRH rats compared to HRH. In control HRH females, compared to LRH, the content of DC, SB were higher and TBA-ap - lower. In HRH females, compared to HRH males, TC was higher and SB - lower. Under stress, in HRH females DC and TBA-ap were increased, TC and Sb - decreased. In LRH females all indicators increased. Lower TC and TBA-ap values were noted in HRH compared to LRH females rats. In control HRH males, compared to females, lower TC and higher values of SB were found. In LRH males, compared to females, the values of DC, TC, SB were higher. During stress, a more intensive course of LPO was noted in males. SOD in control HRH males, compared to LRH, was higher; CAT was not statistically different. Under stress, SOD decreased, CAT - increased. In HRH males, compared to LRH, in this group SOD was higher CAT - lower. In the control, HRH females, compared to LRH, had higher SOD, lower - CAT. Under stress, CAT increased in HRH females; in LRH females CAT decreased and SOD - increased. In HRH females, compared to LRH, CAT was higher. In control males, compared to females, SOD and CAT was higher. Under stress higher SOD was in females, and CAT - in males. GSH and GP were higher in control HRH compared to LRH males and females. Under stress, in males the GSH increased, GR decreased; GP in HRH decreased, in LRH it increased. HRH males, compared to LRH, GSH and GR were higher, GP - lower. Under stress, in females GSH, GP, GR in females decreased; HRH, compared to LRH, had higher GP and GH. In intact HRH males, compared to females, was higher GR and less GP; in LRH males, compared to females, GR was higher. Under stress, males had higher GSH, GP and GR values compared to females. The studied biochemical changes in the heart are accompanied by alterative changes in the structural components of the myocardium in the experimental groups. Conclusions: Congenital resistance to hypoxia is associated with a greater power of the enzymatic and non-enzymatic links of the antioxidant system. Immobilization stress repeated four times with an interval of 72 hours is accompanied by the most significant increase in the content of lipid peroxidation products in the heart homogenate of lower resistant to hypoxia rats, especially males. A decrease in Schiff bases is observed in all males and highly hypoxia-resistant females. In males, a more intense accumulation of lipid peroxide oxidation products, higher catalase activity and a more active glutathione system were noted. Females have significantly higher superoxide dismutase activity. Morphological changes confirm more damage to the heart of low hypoxia-resistant rats, more males.

Strong but Fragmented Memory of a Stressful Episode.

While it is commonly assumed that stressful events are vividly remembered, it remains largely unknown whether all aspects of memory for a stressful episode are enhanced. In this preregistered study, we tested whether stress enhances later remembering of individual elements of a stressful episode at the cost of impaired processing of the association between these elements. Therefore, male and female participants (N = 122) underwent a stressful (or control) episode during which they encoded a series of stimuli. To investigate stress effects on the memory for individual events and the links between these, we used temporal sequence effects in recognition memory tested 24 h after encoding. Specifically, we tested whether stress would affect the memory enhancement for a target item if this is preceded by another item that also preceded the target during encoding (recognition priming). Our results showed that participants recalled single events encoded under stress better than those encoded under nonstressful conditions, but were less able to leverage the temporal sequence of events encoded under stress to cue memory at delayed recall, reflected in reduced memory for items preceded by the item that preceded them also during encoding. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy further revealed that encoding under stress was accompanied by opposite changes in inferotemporal and dorsolateral prefrontal areas. Together, our data suggest that acute stress induces a mode of memory formation that results in strong but less integrated memories.

Enhanced memory for central visual and auditory elements experienced during a stressful episode

Acute psychosocial stress has been shown to benefit memory for central visual elements of a stressful episode. Here, we aimed at investigating whether this effect is accompanied by improved visual memory for the committee members in a modified version of the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Specifically, we tested participants´ recognition memory for accessories located on the bodies of the committee members, as well as their faces. Moreover, we investigated how stress influences memories for the content of the verbal interactions. That is, we studied how well participants remembered factual information associated with the main stress source, like name, age, and position of the committee members, as well as how accurately they could recite the exact wording of phrases used by them. In a counterbalanced 2 × 2 design, 77 men and women took part either in a stressful or non-stressful version of the TSST. While stressed participants better remembered personal information about the committee members than non-stressed participants, no differences in memory for the correct wording of phrases could be observed. Furthermore, in line with our hypothesis, stressed participants better remembered central, but not peripheral visual stimuli, compared to non-stressed participants, while, contrary to our expectations, stress did neither affect memory for objects located on the bodies of the committee members nor their faces. Our results are in line with the theory of enhanced memory binding under stress and extend previous results regarding improved memory for central visual elements encoded under stress to auditory learning material associated with the stressor.

Hippocampal sharp wave ripples underlie stress susceptibility in male mice

The ventral hippocampus (vHC) is a core brain region for emotional memory. Here, we examined how the vHC regulates stress susceptibility from the level of gene expression to neuronal population dynamics in male mice. Transcriptome analysis of samples from stress-naïve mice revealed that intrinsic calbindin (Calb1) expression in the vHC is associated with susceptibility to social defeat stress. Mice with Calb1 gene knockdown in the vHC exhibited increased stress resilience and failed to show the increase in the poststress ventral hippocampal sharp wave ripple (SWR) rate. Poststress vHC SWRs triggered synchronous reactivation of stress memory-encoding neuronal ensembles and facilitated information transfer to the amygdala. Suppression of poststress vHC SWRs by real-time feedback stimulation or walking prevented social behavior deficits. Taken together, our results demonstrate that internal reactivation of memories of negative stressful episodes supported by ventral hippocampal SWRs serves as a crucial neurophysiological substrate for determining stress susceptibility.

Changes of electrocardiograms and heart morphology of animals with different resistance to hypoxia under influences of stress

Stress is a process that increases a person’s adaptive capacity and leads to the various diseases, such as hypertension, coronary artery disease, heart attack, cardiac arrest, stroke, mental disorders such as depression and anxiety and even sudden death. Individual response to stress may depend on age, gender, features of autonomic regulation, state of the central nervous system, endocrine systems, higher nervous activity. With excessive stress, the work of internal organs is disturbed, in particular, the cardiovascular system. Determination of the damaging effect of stress on the cardiovascular system in individuals with different reactivity will contribute to the development of individual correction methods. The aim of the study was to analyze the changes in electrocardiograms (ECG) and morphological feachers after stress in animals with different resistance to hypoxia. Material and methods of investigation. Experiments were performed on 48 Wistar rats, with high and low resistance to hypoxia (HRH, LRH), aged 5–6 months. Animals were divided into two groups – control and experimental (after immobilization stress). Individuals with different resistance to hypoxia were selected by method of V. Ya. Berezovsky. Stress was modeled by three one-hour immobilization of rats, which were immobilized on their backs with an interval of 24 hours between each stressful episode. Investigation we did after 24 hours after third immobilization. Under anesthesia were registrated ECG and taken heart for morphological investigation. Sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin. Results. In examining the ECG in control HRH and LRH animals, no significant difference in the analyzed ECG indicators was established. 24 hours after the last 1 hour three-time immobilization in HRH rats were noted an increase in heart rate, a decrease of the duration of the RR interval, a decrease of the amplitude of the R wave, an increase of QTc interval, an increase of the amplitude of the T wave, an increase in the deviation of the ST segment from the isoline. In LRH rats, stress caused an increase in heart rate, a decrease in the duration of the RR interval, a decrease in the duration of the PQ interval, a decrease in the amplitude of the R wave, an increase in the amplitude of the T wave, an increase in the deviation of the ST segment from the isoline. When comparing the parameters of НRH and LRH rats, in LRH were found a smaller amplitude of the P wave, a smaller amplitude of the R wave, a smaller value of the QTc interval, greater deviation of the ST segment from the isoline. Physiological changes on ECG can also connected with morphological feaches. Conclusions. Stress leads to changes in functional and histological properties of heart, which depends on resistance to hypoxia. In the ECG 24 hours after the last 1 hour three-time immobilization in HRH and LRH rats were noted an increase in heart rate, a decrease of the duration of the RR interval, a decrease of the amplitude of the R wave, an increase of the amplitude of the T wave, an increase in the deviation of the ST segment from the isoline. In HRH rats were also an increase of QTc interval, in LRH rats – a decrease in the duration of the PQ interval. Indxes changes were grater in LRH rats. Mophological changes was higher also in LRH animals.

Reappraisal enhances memory formation for a stressful episode

Emotion regulation strategies have been shown to modify the physiological response to stress, yet whether these strategies can modulate also cognitive responses to stress is largely unknown. A prominent cognitive response to stress is the enhanced memory formation for the stressful event, which is an adaptive mechanism to prepare for similar events in the future. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate whether emotion regulation strategies impact the memory formation for a stressful episode. In a two-day study, participants (n = 124) underwent an enriched stressful episode or a control episode. Critically, before the exposure to the stressor, they were instructed to use a suppression or reappraisal strategy during the stressful episode. One week later, participants completed a memory test for central and peripheral details of this episode. Our results show that reappraisal enhanced not only the cortisol response to the stressor but also the memory formation for central features of the stressful episode. This reappraisal-related boost of memory for the stressor was particularly pronounced in participants’ with high working memory capacity. These findings show that reappraisal may not only impact the physiological response to a stressful event but also the cognitive representation of this event in memory.

Porotic Hyperostosis Observed in the 16th to 19th Century Crania of Native Siberians, Russian Settlers, and Joseon Dynasty Koreans

Porotic hyperostosis (PH) is the skeletal marker used in the estimation of physiological stress suffered in childhood. Despite a conventional hypothesis that mankind’s health conditions declined with the advent of agriculture, there are few reports comparing the PH seen on ancient crania of hunters-fishermen-gatherers and agrarian peoples. In this study, we examined the crania of 16th to 19th century Eurasian peoples: Siberian natives (hunters-fishermen-gatherers), Russian settlers, and Joseon Koreans (agriculturalists) to see whether PH could be observed to differ between populations with varying subsistence strategies. The prevalence of PH decreased in the order of Joseon people (18.9 %), Russian settlers (6.3 %), and Siberian natives (3.8 %). In brief, the hunters-fishermen-gatherers’ stress level was lower than agriculture-based Joseon people and Russian settlers. In addition, Joseon people might have been exposed to more serious stressful episodes than Russian settlers were. We assume that the former might have lived under much stressful conditions than the latter did, though both people depended on intense agriculture. As for sexual dimorphism of PH: in all groups, males were identified with more PH signs than females were. Our report successfully shows that the detailed pattern of stress markers might have been influenced by complex interactions between various factors that existed under different conditions in history.

Coping with the COVID-19 pandemic: Strategies employed by different sociodemographic groups and their role on quality of life

The ways people cope with stressful and crisis-inducing episodes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, have implications for quality of life. The current study aimed to analyse how coping strategies used by individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic varied according to sociodemographic characteristics. It also aimed to analyse how such strategies influence quality of life. Through an online survey, 505 adults living in Portugal reported on their sociodemographic characteristics, coping strategies, and perceptions of quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic period. A sociodemographic questionnaire and the Portuguese versions of the Brief COPE and WHOQOL-BREF were used to assess the variables of interest.The main results suggest that middle-aged and more educated individuals, who were exposed to more risks at work, used more effective coping strategies. Men used more self-blaming coping strategies while women used more emotional support, religion, distraction, self-distraction, and behavioural withdrawal. Active coping was the strongest predictor of physical, psychological, and social domains of quality of life.Further studies are needed to examine the growth trajectory after the mitigation phase and the coping strategies used to promote mental health. Overall, advocating for active coping with current challenges promotes positive perceptions of quality of life amid the pandemic COVID-19.

Blockade of corticotropin-releasing factor-1 receptors in the infralimbic cortex prevents stress-induced reinstatement of alcohol seeking in male Wistar rats: Evidence of interaction between CRF1 and orexin receptor signaling

Alcohol use dysregulates responsivity to stress, which is mediated by corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF). With repeated cycles of alcohol use, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis becomes hyporesponsive, rendering individuals vulnerable to the reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behavior during stressful episodes. Orexin (Orx; also called hypocretin) plays a well-established role in regulating diverse physiological processes, including stress, and interacts with CRF. The infralimbic cortex (IL) is a CRF-rich region. Anatomical evidence suggests that CRF and Orx interact in this area. To test the behavioral implication of CRF and Orx transmission in the IL during the stress-induced reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behavior, male Wistar rats were trained to self-administer 10% alcohol for 3 weeks. The rats then underwent two weeks of extinction training (identical to the alcohol self-administration sessions, but alcohol was withheld). The day after the last extinction session, the rats received a bilateral intra-IL injection of the CRF1 receptor antagonist CP154,526 (0.6 μg/0.5 μl/side), the dual Orx receptor antagonist TCS1102 (15 μg/0.5 μl/side), or their combination and then were tested for the footshock stress-induced reinstatement of alcohol-seeking behavior. CP154,526 significantly prevented reinstatement, but TCS1102 did not produce such an effect. Interestingly, the co-administration of TCS1102 and CP154,526 reversed the effect of CP154,526 alone, and footshock stress induced a significant increase in Crhr1 and Hcrtr2 mRNA expression in the IL. These results demonstrate a functional interaction between Orx receptor and CRF1 receptor signaling and suggest that CRF1 receptor antagonism may ameliorate stress-induced alcohol-seeking behavior.

Medically-oriented design for explainable AI for stress prediction from physiological measurements

BackgroundIn the last decade, a lot of attention has been given to develop artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for mental health using machine learning. To build trust in AI applications, it is crucial for AI systems to provide for practitioners and patients the reasons behind the AI decisions. This is referred to as Explainable AI. While there has been significant progress in developing stress prediction models, little work has been done to develop explainable AI for mental health.MethodsIn this work, we address this gap by designing an explanatory AI report for stress prediction from wearable sensors. Because medical practitioners and patients are likely to be familiar with blood test reports, we modeled the look and feel of the explanatory AI on those of a standard blood test report. The report includes stress prediction and the physiological signals related to stressful episodes. In addition to the new design for explaining AI in mental health, the work includes the following contributions: Methods to automatically generate different components of the report, an approach for evaluating and validating the accuracies of the explanations, and a collection of ground truth of relationships between physiological measurements and stress prediction.ResultsTest results showed that the explanations were consistent with ground truth. The reference intervals for stress versus non-stress were quite distinctive with little variation. In addition to the quantitative evaluations, a qualitative survey, conducted by three expert psychiatrists confirmed the usefulness of the explanation report in understanding the different aspects of the AI system.ConclusionIn this work, we have provided a new design for explainable AI used in stress prediction based on physiological measurements. Based on the report, users and medical practitioners can determine what biological features have the most impact on the prediction of stress in addition to any health-related abnormalities. The effectiveness of the explainable AI report was evaluated using a quantitative and a qualitative assessment. The stress prediction accuracy was shown to be comparable to state-of-the-art. The contributions of each physiological signal to the stress prediction was shown to correlate with ground truth. In addition to these quantitative evaluations, a qualitative survey with psychiatrists confirmed the confidence and effectiveness of the explanation report in the stress made by the AI system. Future work includes the addition of more explanatory features related to other emotional states of the patient, such as sadness, relaxation, anxiousness, or happiness.

Acute pre-learning stress selectively impairs hippocampus-dependent fear memory consolidation: Behavioral and molecular evidence

Despite compelling evidence that stress or stress-related hormones influence fear memory consolidation processes, the understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying the effects of stress is still fragmentary. The release of corticosterone in response to pre-learning stress exposure has been demonstrated to modulate positively or negatively memory encoding and/or consolidation according to many variables such as stress intensity, the emotional valence of the learned material or the interval between stressful episode and learning experience. Here, we report that contextual but not cued fear memory consolidation was selectively impaired in male mice exposed to a 50 min-period of restraint stress just before the unpaired fear conditioning session. In addition to behavioral impairment, acute stress down-regulated activated/phosphorylated ERK1/2 (pERK1/2) in dorsal hippocampal area CA1 in mice sacrificed 60 min and 9 h after unpaired conditioning. In lateral amygdala, although acute stress by itself increased the level of pERK1/2 it nevertheless blocked the peak of pERK1/2 that was normally observed 15 min after unpaired conditioning. To examine whether stress-induced corticosterone overflow was responsible of these detrimental effects, the corticosterone synthesis inhibitor, metyrapone, was administered 30 min before stress exposure. Metyrapone abrogated the stress-induced contextual fear memory deficits but did not alleviate the effects of stress on pERK1/2 and its downstream target phosphorylated CREB (pCREB) in hippocampus CA1 and lateral amygdala. Collectively, our observations suggest that consolidation of hippocampus-dependent memory and the associated signaling pathway are particularly sensitive to stress. However, behavioral normalization by preventive metyrapone treatment was not accompanied by renormalization of the canonical signaling pathway. A new avenue would be to consider surrogate mechanisms involving proper metyrapone influence on both nongenomic and genomic actions of glucocorticoid receptors.

Different Fish Meal and Fish Oil Dietary Levels in European Sea Bass: Welfare Implications After Acute Confinement Stress

To provide practical feeding management guidelines preceding a stressful episode during farming practices, European sea bass juveniles (initial weight: 72.3 g) were fed for 60-days different fish meal (FM) and fish oil (FO) dietary levels [high (30% FM, 15% FO, FM30/FO15), intermediate (20% FM, 7% FO, FM20/FO7), and low (10% FM, 3% FO, FM10/FO3)] in triplicate conditions. Fish were then fasted for 36 h and exposed to a 2-h acute crowding (80 kg m–3 biomass). Plasma biochemistry, skin mucus parameters and gene expression of stress and immune-related genes were performed before, at 2 and 24 h after crowding. At the end of the trial, the FM10/FO3 group showed lower final body weight, weight gain, and specific growth rate compared to the other treatments. Most of the plasma parameters were mainly affected by crowding condition rather than diet; however, after stress, lactate was higher in the FM30/FO15 group compared to the other treatments. Similarly, protease, antiprotease, peroxidase and lysozyme in skin mucus were mostly affected by crowding conditions, while fish fed FM10/FO3 displayed higher skin mucosal IgM and bactericidal activity against Vibrio anguillarum and V. harveyi. Most of the stress-related genes considered (hsp70 and gr-1 in the brain; hsp70, gr-1 and gr-2 in the head kidney), showed an overall expression pattern that increased over time after stress, in addition, hsp70 in the head kidney was also up-regulated in fish fed FM30/FO15 after stress. Higher plasmatic lactate together with the up-regulation of some stress-related transcripts suggest a higher reactivity to acute crowding of the stress-response mechanism in fish fed high FM and FO dietary levels. Otherwise, the higher skin mucosal IgM and bactericidal activity observed in fish fed FM10/FO3 dietary levels seems to indicate that acute crowding was able to activate a higher pro-inflammatory response in this treatment. Overall, the results of the present study seem to indicate that 10% FM and 3% FO dietary levels might affect stress and immune responses.

Psychological Characteristics of Patients with Takotsubo Syndrome and Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome: An Explorative Study toward a Better Personalized Care.

During an acute cardiac event, Takotsubo Syndrome (TTS) and Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) apparently share very similar clinical characteristics. Since only a few inconsistent studies have evaluated the psychological features that characterize these different patients, the aim of the present explorative research was to investigate if post-recovery TTS and ACS patients present different psychological profiles. We also investigated whether the occurrence of acute psychological stressful episodes that had occurred prior to the cardiac event could be found in either syndrome. Twenty TTS and twenty ACS female patients were recruited. All patients completed self-report questionnaires about anxiety and depressive symptoms, perceived stress, type-D personality and post-traumatic symptoms. Results showed that only three subscales of health anxiety (i.e., Fear of Death/Diseases, Interference and Reassurance) significantly differed between the two groups, while no differences were found in the other psychological measurements. Moreover, personality traits seem to not be associated with the impact of the cardiac traumatic event. Finally, only TTS patients reported the presence of a significant emotional trigger preceding the acute cardiac event. In conclusion, post-recovery TTS patients differ from ACS patients in their level of concern about their health and in their need of reassurance and information only, probably as a result of the different clinical characteristics of the two illnesses.

When ART fails: figures, experiences, interventions and a plea for the \u2018plan B\u2019

Infertility is perceived by many of those affected by it as one of the most stressful episodes in life. Assisted reproduction can help only some of the people with a desire for children to experience the birth of a biological child. Most people who remain involuntarily childless eventually come to terms with the situation; their psychological well-being is not lastingly affected. However, they should envisage a ‘plan B’ as early as possible. The prospect of permanent childlessness should not be an unmentionable topic, neither for couples themselves nor for the doctors treating them.

The memory trace of a stressful episode

Stress influences episodic memory formation via noradrenaline and glucocorticoid effects on amygdala and hippocampus. A common finding is the improvement of memory for central aspects of a stressful episode. This is putatively related to changes in the neural representations of specific experiences, i.e., their memory traces. Here we show that the memory improvement for objects that were encountered in a stressful episode relates to differences in the neural representations of these objects in the amygdala. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we found that stress specifically altered the representations of central objects: compared to control objects, they became more similar to one another and more distinct from objects that were not part of this episode. Furthermore, higher similarity of central objects to the main stressor-the faces of the stress-inducing committee members-predicted better memory. This suggests that the central objects were closely integrated into a stressor-centered memory representation. Our findings provide mechanistic insights into how stress shapes the memory trace and have profound implications for neurocognitive models of stressful and emotional memory.

Stressful Life Events In First Episode Psychosis

Introduction: First episode psychosis refers to the first time someone experiences psychotic symptoms or a psychotic episode. There are evidences related to the role of major life events and childhood trauma in the development of first episode psychosis. There are few studies regarding the environmental exposure to stressful life events and how these events might influence the onset of a psychotic disorder, and role of perceived stress. This study aimed to identify the relationship between stressful life events and first episode psychosis in Nepalese context.
 Material And Method: It was a hospital based cross-sectional, descriptive study. A total of 50 cases of first episode psychosis were included and the diagnosis was made according to ICD 10- Diagnostic Criteria for Research and verified by two consultant psychiatrists. Semi Structured Performa was designed to collect the information about the socio demographic data and perceived stress was assessed with Presumptive Stressful Life Events Scale (PSLES).
 Results: There were 62% female and 38% male patients with first episode psychosis with mean age 26.32 years. Majority of the participants were from rural areas (94%), married (58%), educated up to primary level (38%) and housewife (40%). 60.7% of ATPD had stressful life events (P =0. 000)which was higher than the stressful life events in patient with Schizophrenia (P =0. 005). There was a positive correlation between stressful life events and gender, setting, socioeconomic status and Diagnosis (P <0.05).
 Conclusion: Results show the relevance of presence of stressful life events as a potent source of perceived stress in first episode psychosis sample. Therefore this study highlights the importance of psychosocial intervention in this vulnerable group for management of illness and might be an important strategy for prevention.

Odours as context cues of emotional memories – The role of semantic relatedness

Odours constitute effective context cues, facilitating memory retrieval. Identifying factors which modulate the effectiveness of olfactory context cues can advance the understanding of processes underlying this effect. We hypothesized that the interplay of subjective stress and semantic relatedness between the odour and the learning material would modulate the effectiveness of an olfactory context cue. We further explored the effect of the odorant Hedione, which is a ligand for a putative human pheromone receptor (VN1R1). To this end, 120 participants watched a video of a stressful episode in which visual objects were present, that were either manipulated in the video (central objects) or not (peripheral objects). Participants rated their subjective stress afterwards. After 24 h, recognition and spatial memory of the objects in the video were tested. Ambient during encoding and recall was an odour related to the episode, an unrelated odour, Hedione or no odour. As a result, we observed a narrowing of recognition memory with increased subjective stress elicited by the video - but only if a semantically related odour was ambient. Moreover, higher subjective stress predicted enhanced spatial memory in the no odour condition, but not in presence of a semantically related or unrelated odour. When exposed to Hedione, higher subjective stress predicted impaired recognition and spatial memory of peripheral objects. Our findings stress the importance of considering semantic relatedness between the olfactory context and the encoded episode when applying odours as context cues for emotional or stressful memories.