Stress research during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.

Hormonal contraceptive usage influences stress hormone effects on cognition and emotion

Physical activity impacts immune homeostasis and leads to rapid and marked increase in cell-free DNA (cfDNA). However, the origin of cfDNA during exercise remains elusive and it is unknown if physical activity could improve or interfere with methylation based liquid biopsy. We analyzed the methylation levels of four validated CpGs representing cfDNA from granulocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes, and non-hematopoietic cells, in healthy individuals in response to exercise, and in patients with hematological malignancies under resting conditions. The analysis revealed that physical activity almost exclusively triggered DNA release from granulocytes, highlighting the relevance as a pre-analytical variable which could compromise diagnostic accuracy. 

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Physical activity specifically evokes release of cell-free DNA from granulocytes thereby affecting liquid biopsy

Cognitive emotion regulation withstands the stress test: An fMRI study on the effect of acute stress on distraction and reappraisal.

Although women and men differ in psychological and endocrine stress responses as well as in the prevalence rates of stress-related disorders, knowledge on sex differences regarding stress regulation in the brain is scarce. Therefore, we performed an in-depth analysis of data from 67 healthy participants (31 women, taking oral contraceptives), who were exposed to the ScanSTRESS paradigm in a functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Changes in cortisol, affect, heart rate and neural activation in response to psychosocial stress were examined in women and men as well as potential sex-specific interactions between stress response domains. Stress exposure led to significant cortisol increases, with men exhibiting higher levels than women. Depending on sex, cortisol elevations were differently associated with stress-related responses in striato-limbic structures: higher increases were associated with activations in men but with deactivations in women. Regarding affect or heart rate responses, no sex differences emerged. Although women and men differ in their overall stress reactivity, our findings do not support the idea of distinct neural networks as the base of this difference. Instead, we found differential stress reactions for women and men in identical structures. We propose considering quantitative predictors such as sex-specific cortisol increases when exploring neural response differences of women and men.

Sex-specific interaction between cortisol and striato-limbic responses to psychosocial stress.

Investigating individual stress reactivity: High hair cortisol predicts lower acute stress responses

The ability to regulate emotions is essential for psychological well-being. Therefore, it is particularly important to investigate the specific dynamics of emotion regulation. In a new approach, we...

Script-based Reappraisal Test introducing a new paradigm to investigate the effect of reappraisal inventiveness on reappraisal effectiveness.

The perils of aiming too high: Discrepancy between goals and performance in individuals with depressive symptoms

Recent theories propose moderate (compared to high or no) stressor exposure to promote emotion regulation capacities. More precisely, stressful situations are expected to serve as practice opportunities for cognitive reappraisal (CR), that is, the reinterpretation of a situation to alter its emotional impact. Accordingly, in this study, we expect an inverted U-shaped relationship between exposure to daily hassles and performance in a CR task, that is, best reappraisal ability in individuals with a history of moderate stressor exposure. Participants (N = 165) reported the number of daily hassles during the last week as indicator of stressor exposure and completed the Script-based Reappraisal Test (SRT). In the SRT, participants are presented with fear-eliciting scripts and instructed to either downregulate negative affect via reappraisal (reappraisal-trials) or react naturally (control-trials). Two measures indicate CR ability: (1) reappraisal effectiveness, that is, the difference between affective ratings in reappraisal- and control-trials and (2) reappraisal inventiveness, that is, the number of valid and categorically different reappraisal thoughts. Multiple regression analyses revealed positive linear, but not quadratic, relationships of exposure to daily hassles and both indicators of CR ability. Potential benefits of stressor exposure for emotion regulation processes are discussed.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/smi.3101

Peter Zeier

Papers

Investigating individual stress reactivity: High hair cortisol predicts lower acute stress responses

Script-based Reappraisal Test introducing a new paradigm to investigate the effect of reappraisal inventiveness on reappraisal effectiveness.

Cognitive emotion regulation withstands the stress test: An fMRI study on the effect of acute stress on distraction and reappraisal.

The perils of aiming too high: Discrepancy between goals and performance in individuals with depressive symptoms

It's worth the trouble: Stressor exposure is related to increased cognitive reappraisal ability