title: Context influences the interplay of endocrine axes across the day.
abstract: The current investigation examined stressors upon the coupling of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axes. Emphasis is placed on the moderating role of context and time. One hundred and eighteen adolescent males and females provided up to 32 diurnal saliva samples across a visit to a research lab. This visit constituted a day-long stress through which the impact on HPA-HPG axis coupling could be assessed. We tested four models of HPA-HPG axis coupling across the lab day. Sex and stress hormones operated synchronously (β = .404, p < .001), and the coupling of sex and stress hormones was moderated by the stress of the lab day (β = .010, p = .05). This pattern of co-elevation did not appear to be moderated by the distal experience of early life adversity. Findings suggest that the notion of "stress" must disentangle proximal and distal challenges, each of which appears to impact neurobiological processes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Iowa State University, Ames, IA.
authors.forename: Andrew R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Dismukes
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Iowa State University, Ames, IA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Shirtcliff
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC.
authors.forename: Jamie L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Hanson
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Madison, WI.
authors.forename: Seth D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Pollak
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000378:metabolism*; D046468:Sexual Development / Q000502:physiology*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D013739:Testosterone; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone; D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: DHEA; HPA; HPG; adolescence; cortisol; coupling; stress; testosterone