title: Cardiovascular reactivity and plasma prolactin response to mental stress in normals and hypertensives.
abstract: Central dopaminergic activity (CDA) may be involved in blood pressure control as a negative modulator of sympathetic outflow. In this study the plasma PRL changes produced by mental stress (a colour-word conflict test, CWT) were investigated in normals (NT, n.15) and stable hypertensives (HT, n.16) and the PRL response, as a possible index of CDA was correlated to the cardiovascular and the plasma renin activity (PRA) responses as indexes of peripheral sympathetic outflow. A significant (p less than 0.05) slight decrease in mean values of PRL was observed in normals after the CWT but no change was found in hypertensives. No correlation was found between the PRL responses to CWT and the maximal mean arterial pressure changes or the PRA changes whether the groups were considered separately or together. These findings indicates that PRL does not appear to be a reliable index of the CDA involved in blood pressure control.
authors.affiliation: Istituto di Patologia Speciale Medica Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italy.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Musumeci
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Baroni
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cardillo
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zuppi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Folli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D004298:Dopamine / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011388:Prolactin / Q000097:blood* / Q000502:physiology; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D012083:Renin / Q000097:blood; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D011388:Prolactin; D012083:Renin; D004298:Dopamine