The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis and sex hormones in chronic stress and obesity: pathophysiological and clinical aspects

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Abstract

Obesity, particularly the abdominal phenotype, has been ascribed to an individual maladaptation to chronic environmental stress exposure mediated by a dysregulation of related neuroendocrine axes. Alterations in the control and action of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis play a major role in this context, with the participation of the sympathetic nervous system. The ability to adapt to chronic stress may differ according to sex, with specific pathophysiological events leading to the development of stress-related chronic diseases. This seems to be influenced by the regulatory effects of sex hormones, particularly androgens. Stress may also disrupt the control of feeding, with some differences according to sex. Finally, the amount of experimental data in both animals and humans may help to shed more light on specific phenotypes of obesity, strictly related to the chronic exposure to stress. This challenge may potentially imply a different pathophysiological perspective and, possibly, a specific treatment.

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Most cited references 136

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Banting lecture 1988. Role of insulin resistance in human disease.

G M Reaven (1988)

Resistance to insulin-stimulated glucose uptake is present in the majority of patients with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) or non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and in approximately 25% of nonobese individuals with normal oral glucose tolerance. In these conditions, deterioration of glucose tolerance can only be prevented if the beta-cell is able to increase its insulin secretory response and maintain a state of chronic hyperinsulinemia. When this goal cannot be achieved, gross decompensation of glucose homeostasis occurs. The relationship between insulin resistance, plasma insulin level, and glucose intolerance is mediated to a significant degree by changes in ambient plasma free-fatty acid (FFA) concentration. Patients with NIDDM are also resistant to insulin suppression of plasma FFA concentration, but plasma FFA concentrations can be reduced by relatively small increments in insulin concentration. Consequently, elevations of circulating plasma FFA concentration can be prevented if large amounts of insulin can be secreted. If hyperinsulinemia cannot be maintained, plasma FFA concentration will not be suppressed normally, and the resulting increase in plasma FFA concentration will lead to increased hepatic glucose production. Because these events take place in individuals who are quite resistant to insulin-stimulated glucose uptake, it is apparent that even small increases in hepatic glucose production are likely to lead to significant fasting hyperglycemia under these conditions. Although hyperinsulinemia may prevent frank decompensation of glucose homeostasis in insulin-resistant individuals, this compensatory response of the endocrine pancreas is not without its price. Patients with hypertension, treated or untreated, are insulin resistant, hyperglycemic, and hyperinsulinemic. In addition, a direct relationship between plasma insulin concentration and blood pressure has been noted. Hypertension can also be produced in normal rats when they are fed a fructose-enriched diet, an intervention that also leads to the development of insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia. The development of hypertension in normal rats by an experimental manipulation known to induce insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia provides further support for the view that the relationship between the three variables may be a causal one.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

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Endocrinology of the stress response.

Evangelia Charmandari, Constantine Tsigos, George Panagiotis Chrousos (2005)

The stress response is subserved by the stress system, which is located both in the central nervous system and the periphery. The principal effectors of the stress system include corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH); arginine vasopressin; the proopiomelanocortin-derived peptides alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone and beta-endorphin, the glucocorticoids; and the catecholamines norepinephrine and epinephrine. Appropriate responsiveness of the stress system to stressors is a crucial prerequisite for a sense of well-being, adequate performance of tasks, and positive social interactions. By contrast, inappropriate responsiveness of the stress system may impair growth and development and may account for a number of endocrine, metabolic, autoimmune, and psychiatric disorders. The development and severity of these conditions primarily depend on the genetic vulnerability of the individual, the exposure to adverse environmental factors, and the timing of the stressful events, given that prenatal life, infancy, childhood, and adolescence are critical periods characterized by increased vulnerability to stressors.

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Neurocircuitry of stress: central control of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis.

James P Herman, William E. Cullinan (1997)

Integration of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal stress response occurs by way of interactions between stress-sensitive brain circuitry and neuroendocrine neurons of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). Stressors involving an immediate physiologic threat ('systemic' stressors) are relayed directly to the PVN, probably via brainstem catecholaminergic projections. By contrast, stressors requiring interpretation by higher brain structures ('processive' stressors) appear to be channeled through limbic forebrain circuits. Forebrain limbic sites connect with the PVN via interactions with GABA-containing neurons in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, preoptic area and hypothalamus. Thus, final elaboration of processive stress responses is likely to involve modulation of PVN GABAergic tone. The functional and neuroanatomical data obtained suggest that disease processes involving inappropriate stress control involve dysfunction of processive stress pathways.

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Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Ann N Y Acad Sci

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci

Journal ID (publisher-id): nyas

Title: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

Publisher: Blackwell Publishing Inc (Malden, USA )

ISSN (Print): 0077-8923

ISSN (Electronic): 1749-6632

Publication date (Print): August 2012

Publication date (Electronic): 21 May 2012

Volume: 1264

Issue: 1

Pages: 20-35

Affiliations

Division of Endocrinology, Department of Clinical Medicine, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, University Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna Bologna, Italy

Author notes

Address for correspondence: Renato Pasquali, M.D., Division of Endocrinology, Department of Clinical Medicine, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, University Alma Mater Studiorum, Via Massarenti 9, 40138 Bologna, Italy. renato.pasquali@ 123456unibo.it

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DOI: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2012.06569.x

PMC ID: 3464358

PubMed ID: 22612409

SO-VID: 07be1ca5-b916-45c8-8c36-f10d3c0dbcd0

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Re-use of this article is permitted in accordance with the Creative Commons Deed, Attribution 2.5, which does not permit commercial exploitation.

The hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis and sex hormones in chronic stress and obesity: pathophysiological and clinical aspects

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Sex hormones and lung development

Most cited references 136

Banting lecture 1988. Role of insulin resistance in human disease.

Endocrinology of the stress response.

Neurocircuitry of stress: central control of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis.

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