Coping and immunosuppression: inescapable but not escapable shock suppresses lymphocyte proliferation.
Rats were given series of escapable shocks, identical inescapable shocks, or no shock. The subjects were reexposed to a small amount of shock 24 hours later, after which an in vitro measure of the cellular immune response was examined. Lymphocyte proliferation in response to the mitogens phytohemagglutinin and concanavalin A was suppressed in the inescapable shock group but not in the escapable shock group. This suggests that the controllability of stressors is critical in modulating immune functioning.
D000818:Animals; D003208:Concanavalin A / Q000494:pharmacology; D004597:Electroshock; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D010835:Phytohemagglutinins / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000276:immunology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
D010835:Phytohemagglutinins; D003208:Concanavalin A