What is it about?

Stress can produce adverse effects on the organism. Exposure to stress can trigger depression and several other ailments. The body responds to stress by secreting hormones like ACTH and cortisol/corticosterone, respectively by the pituitary gland and adrenals. The control of the primary signaling brain hormone ACTH can be a target for the development of anti-stress drugs and eventually, be useful in depression and anxiety. Our results show and confirm that vasopressine and corticotrophine-releasing-hormone (CRH) take part in the control of ACTH secretion and differentially respond to physical or psychological stresses.

Featured Image

Why is it important?

This is a confirmation of previous results using different drugs and having the same results, in a proof of concept.

Perspectives

This information adds to the understanding of a complex chain of events that may explain why we develop depression after stressful situations and aid in the prevention and treatment of these conditions. As a matter of fact, psychological stress may be related to depression, while physical stress may not.

PhD Lanfranco R. P. Troncone
Instituto Butantan

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Control of Stress-Induced ACTH Secretion by Vasopressin and CRH: Additional Evidence, Neuropsychobiology, May 2016, Karger Publishers,
DOI: 10.1159/000445480.
You can read the full text:

Read

Contributors

The following have contributed to this page