title: Cognitive Adaptation under Stress: A Case for the Mineralocorticoid Receptor.
abstract: Corticosteroid hormones, released during stressful encounters, have profound and far-reaching effects on cognition. They are often thought to accomplish these effects primarily via glucocorticoid receptors (GR), but recent findings from rodent and human studies argue for an additional, critical role of the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in cognitive changes in response to stress. We propose that the MR initiates rapid changes in the recruitment of specific neural systems, inducing a shift towards cognitively less-demanding processing and allowing a quick and adequate response to the situation. In combination with slower and longer-lasting actions mediated by GR, this shift leads to optimal coping with the ongoing stressful event.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cognitive Psychology, Institute for Psychology, University of Hamburg, Von-Melle-Park 5, 20146 Hamburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vogel
authors.affiliation: Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Center, Kapittelweg 29, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Guillén
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fernández
authors.affiliation: Department of Translational Neuroscience, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Center Utrecht, Universiteitsweg 100, 3584 CG Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marian
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Joëls
authors.affiliation: Department of Cognitive Psychology, Institute for Psychology, University of Hamburg, Von-Melle-Park 5, 20146 Hamburg, Germany. Electronic address: lars.schwabe@uni-hamburg.de.
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schwabe
mesh_terms: D000220:Adaptation, Biological; D000818:Animals; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D006801:Humans; D018161:Receptors, Mineralocorticoid / Q000378:metabolism*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018161:Receptors, Mineralocorticoid
keywords: adaptation; cognition; cortisol; memory; mineralocorticoid receptor; stress