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Kalisch R, Russo SJ, Müller MB. Neurobiology and systems biology of stress resilience. Physiol Rev 2024; 104:1205-1263. [PMID: 38483288 PMCID: PMC11381009 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00042.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Stress resilience is the phenomenon that some people maintain their mental health despite exposure to adversity or show only temporary impairments followed by quick recovery. Resilience research attempts to unravel the factors and mechanisms that make resilience possible and to harness its insights for the development of preventative interventions in individuals at risk for acquiring stress-related dysfunctions. Biological resilience research has been lagging behind the psychological and social sciences but has seen a massive surge in recent years. At the same time, progress in this field has been hampered by methodological challenges related to finding suitable operationalizations and study designs, replicating findings, and modeling resilience in animals. We embed a review of behavioral, neuroimaging, neurobiological, and systems biological findings in adults in a critical methods discussion. We find preliminary evidence that hippocampus-based pattern separation and prefrontal-based cognitive control functions protect against the development of pathological fears in the aftermath of singular, event-type stressors [as found in fear-related disorders, including simpler forms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)] by facilitating the perception of safety. Reward system-based pursuit and savoring of positive reinforcers appear to protect against the development of more generalized dysfunctions of the anxious-depressive spectrum resulting from more severe or longer-lasting stressors (as in depression, generalized or comorbid anxiety, or severe PTSD). Links between preserved functioning of these neural systems under stress and neuroplasticity, immunoregulation, gut microbiome composition, and integrity of the gut barrier and the blood-brain barrier are beginning to emerge. On this basis, avenues for biological interventions are pointed out.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raffael Kalisch
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany
- Neuroimaging Center (NIC), Focus Program Translational Neuroscience (FTN), Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
| | - Scott J Russo
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States
- Brain and Body Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States
| | - Marianne B Müller
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany
- Translational Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
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Schwabe L. Memory Under Stress: From Adaptation to Disorder. Biol Psychiatry 2024:S0006-3223(24)01385-4. [PMID: 38880463 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2024.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Revised: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 06/10/2024] [Indexed: 06/18/2024]
Abstract
Stressful events are ubiquitous in everyday life. Exposure to these stressors initiates the temporally orchestrated release of a multitude of hormones, peptides, and neurotransmitters that target brain areas that have been critically implicated in learning and memory. This review summarizes recent insights on the profound impact of stress on 4 fundamental processes of memory: memory formation, memory contextualization, memory retrieval, and memory flexibility. Stress mediators instigate dynamic alterations in these processes, thereby facilitating efficient responding under stress and the creation of a decontextualized memory representation that can effectively aid coping with novel future threats. While they are generally adaptive, the same stress-related changes may contribute to the rigid behaviors, uncontrollable intrusions, and generalized fear responding seen in anxiety disorders and posttraumatic stress disorder. Drawing on recent discoveries in cognitive neuroscience and psychiatry, this review discusses how stress-induced alterations in memory processes can simultaneously foster adaptation to stressors and fuel psychopathology. The transition from adaptive to maladaptive changes in the impact of stress on memory hinges on the nuanced interplay of stressor characteristics and individual predispositions. Thus, taking individual differences in the cognitive response to stressors into account is essential for any successful treatment of stress-related mental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lars Schwabe
- Department of Cognitive Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
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Mazaheri M, Radahmadi M, Sharifi MR. Effects of chronic social equality and inequality conditions on passive avoidance memory and PTSD-like behaviors in rats under chronic empathic stress. Int J Neurosci 2024:1-12. [PMID: 38598305 DOI: 10.1080/00207454.2024.2341913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Social inequality conditions induce aversion and affect brain functions and mood. This study investigated the effects of chronic social equality and inequality (CSE and CSI, respectively) conditions on passive avoidance memory and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)-like behaviors in rats under chronic empathic stress. METHODS Rats were divided into different groups, including control, sham-observer, sham-demonstrator, observer, demonstrator, and co-demonstrator groups. Chronic stress (2 h/day) was administered to all stressed groups for 21 days. Fear learning, fear memory, memory consolidation, locomotor activity, and PTSD-like behaviors were evaluated using the passive avoidance test. Apart from the hippocampal weight, the correlations of memory and right hippocampal weight with serum corticosterone (CORT) levels were separately assessed for all experimental groups. RESULTS Latency was significantly higher in the demonstrator and sham-demonstrator groups compared to the control group. It was decreased significantly in other groups compared to the control group. Latency was also decreased in the observer and co-demonstrator groups compared to the demonstrator group. Moreover, the right hippocampal weight was significantly decreased in the demonstrator and sham-demonstrator groups compared to the control group. Pearson's correlation of memory and hippocampal weight with serum CORT levels supported the present findings. CONCLUSION Maladaptive fear responses occurred in demonstrators and sham-demonstrators. Also, extremely high levels of psychological stress, especially under CSI conditions (causing abnormal fear learning) led to heightened fear memory and PTSD-like behaviors. Right hippocampal atrophy confirmed the potential role of CSI conditions in promoting PTSD-like behaviors. Compared to inequality conditions, the abnormal fear memory was reduced under equality conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Mazaheri
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Maryam Radahmadi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Mohammad Reza Sharifi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
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Chang J, Song D, Yu R. The double-edged sword of the hippocampus-ventromedial prefrontal cortex resting-state connectivity in stress susceptibility and resilience: A prospective study. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 27:100584. [PMID: 37965440 PMCID: PMC10641247 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100584] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The hippocampus has long been considered a pivotal region implicated in both stress susceptibility and resilience. A wealth of evidence from animal and human studies underscores the significance of hippocampal functional connectivity with the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) in these stress-related processes. However, there remains a scarcity of research that explores and contrasts the roles of hippocampus-vmPFC connectivity in stress susceptibility and resilience when facing a real-life traumatic event from a prospective standpoint. In the present study, we investigated the contributions of undirected and directed connectivity between the hippocampus and vmPFC to stress susceptibility and resilience within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings revealed that the left hippocampus-left vmPFC connectivity prior to the pandemic exhibited a negative correlation with both stress susceptibility and resilience. Specifically, individuals with stronger left hippocampus-left vmPFC connectivity reported experiencing fewer stress-related feelings during the outbreak period of the epidemic but displayed lower levels of stress resilience five months later. Our application of spectral dynamic causal modeling unveiled an additional inhibitory connectivity pathway from the left hippocampus to the left vmPFC in the context of stress susceptibility, which was notably absent in stress resilience. Furthermore, we observed a noteworthy positive association between self-inhibition of the vmPFC and stress susceptibility, with this effect proving substantial enough to predict an individual's susceptibility to stress; conversely, these patterns did not manifest in the realm of stress resilience. These findings enrich our comprehension of stress susceptibility and stress resilience and might have implications for innovative approaches to managing stress-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Chang
- Institute of Psychology, School of Public Policy, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Di Song
- Department of Management, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Rongjun Yu
- Department of Management, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
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Grupe DW, Barnes AL, Gresham L, Kirvin-Quamme A, Nord E, Alexander AL, Abercrombie HC, Schaefer SM, Davidson RJ. Perceived stress associations with hippocampal-dependent behavior and hippocampal subfield volume. Neurobiol Stress 2022; 19:100469. [PMID: 35859546 PMCID: PMC9289864 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Individual differences in stress appraisals influence trajectories of risk and resilience following exposure to chronic and acute stressors. Smaller hippocampal volume may contribute to elevated stress appraisals via deficient pattern separation, a process depending on dentate gyrus (DG)/CA3 hippocampal subfields. Here, we investigated links between perceived stress, DG/CA3 volume, and behavioral pattern separation to test hypothesized mechanisms underlying stress-related psychopathology. Methods We collected the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and ratings of subjective stress reactivity during the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) from 71 adult community participants. We obtained high-resolution T2 MRI scans and used Automatic Segmentation of Hippocampal Subfields to estimate DG/CA3 volume in 56 of these participants. Participants completed the mnemonic similarity task, which provides a behavioral index of pattern separation. Analyses investigated associations between perceived stress, DG/CA3 volume, and behavioral pattern separation, controlling for age, gender, hemisphere, and intracranial volume. Results Greater PSS scores and TSST subjective stress reactivity were each independently related to poorer behavioral pattern separation, together accounting for 15% of variance in behavioral performance in a simultaneous regression. Contrary to hypotheses, DG/CA3 volume was not associated with either stress measure, although exploratory analyses suggested a link between hippocampal volume asymmetry and PSS scores. Conclusions We observed novel associations between laboratory and questionnaire measures of perceived stress and a behavioral assay of pattern separation. Additional work is needed to clarify the involvement of the hippocampus in this stress-behavior relationship and determine the relevance of behavioral pattern separation for stress-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel W Grupe
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA
| | - Alexandra L Barnes
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA
| | - Lauren Gresham
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA
| | - Andrew Kirvin-Quamme
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA
| | - Elizabeth Nord
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA
| | - Andrew L Alexander
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Medical Physics, 1111 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Psychiatry, 6001 Research Park Blvd, Madison, WI, 53719, USA
| | - Heather C Abercrombie
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA
| | - Stacey M Schaefer
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA
| | - Richard J Davidson
- University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Healthy Minds, 625 W Washington Ave, Madison, WI, 53703, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, 1500 Highland Ave, Madison, WI, 53705, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Psychiatry, 6001 Research Park Blvd, Madison, WI, 53719, USA.,University of Wisconsin-Madison Department of Psychology, 1202 W Johnson St, Madison, WI, 53706, USA
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