Philip M. McCabe

Bio: Philip M. McCabe is an academic researcher from University of Miami. The author has contributed to research in topics: Vagal tone & Heart rate. The author has an hindex of 27, co-authored 32 publications receiving 2818 citations. Previous affiliations of Philip M. McCabe include University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.

Evaluation of enzyme immunoassay and radioimmunoassay methods for the measurement of plasma oxytocin

Abstract: Objective There is increased interest in measuring peripheral oxytocin levels to better understand the role of this peptide in mammalian behavior, physiology, and disease. The purpose of this study was to compare methods for plasma oxytocin measurement using a commercially available enzyme immunoassay (EIA) and radioimmunoassay (RIA), to evaluate the need for sample extraction, and to assess the immunospecificity of the assays.

Effects of guided imagery and music (GIM) therapy on mood and cortisol in healthy adults.

Abstract: Healthy adults (N = 28) participated in a randomized trial of Bonny Method of Guided Imagery and Music (GIM; a depth approach to music psychotherapy) sessions on mood and cortisol. Participants in both GIM and wait-list control conditions completed the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and donated 15 cc of blood before and after the 13-week intervention period and again at a 6-week follow-up. Split-plot factorial and post hoc analyses demonstrated that after 6 biweekly sessions GIM participants reported significant decreases between pre- and postsession depression, fatigue, and total mood disturbance and had significant decreases in cortisol level by follow-up. Pretest to follow-up decrease in cortisol was significantly associated with decrease in mood disturbance. A short series of GIM sessions may positively affect mood and reduce cortisol levels in healthy adults. Such changes in hormonal regulation may have health implications for chronically stressed people.

Oxytocin attenuates NADPH-dependent superoxide activity and IL-6 secretion in macrophages and vascular cells

Abstract: Oxytocin is synthesized and released in the heart and vasculature, tissues that also express oxytocin receptors. Although it has been established this intrinsic cardiovascular oxytocin system is important in normal homeostatic cardiac and vascular regulation, a role for this system in cardiovascular pathophysiology has not been investigated. The current study examined the influence of oxytocin on mechanisms in atherogenesis, oxidative stress, and inflammation in cultured human vascular cells, THP-1 monocytes, and macrophages. Oxytocin receptor protein and mRNA expression, NADPH-dependent superoxide activity, and interleukin-6 secretion were measured. Results demonstrated oxytocin receptor protein and mRNA in THP-1 monocytes and macrophages. Incubation of cells at physiological levels of oxytocin significantly decreased basal and stimulated NADPH-dependent superoxide activity in vascular cells, monocytes, and macrophages by 24-48%. Oxytocin also attenuated interleukin-6 secretion from stimulated THP-1 macrophages and endothelial cells by 56 and 26%, respectively. These findings suggest that oxytocin attenuates vascular oxidative stress and inflammation, two important pathophysiological processes in atherosclerosis. The fact that oxytocin receptors are found in monocytes and macrophages, and oxytocin decreases both superoxide production and release of a proinflammatory cytokine from these cells, suggests a potentially larger role for oxytocin in the attenuation of disease.

Emotion Circuits in the Brain

Abstract: The field of neuroscience has, after a long period of looking the other way, again embraced emotion as an important research area. Much of the progress has come from studies of fear, and especially fear conditioning. This work has pin- pointed the amygdala as an important component of the system involved in the acqui- sition, storage, and expression of fear memory and has elucidated in detail how stimuli enter, travel through, and exit the amygdala. Some progress has also been made in understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie fear conditioning, and recent studies have also shown that the findings from experimental animals apply to the human brain. It is important to remember why this work on emotion succeeded where past efforts failed. It focused on a psychologically well-defined aspect of emo- tion, avoided vague and poorly defined concepts such as "affect," "hedonic tone," or "emotional feelings," and used a simple and straightforward experimental approach. With so much research being done in this area today, it is important that the mistakes of the past not be made again. It is also time to expand from this foundation into broader aspects of mind and behavior

Heart rate variability: Origins, methods, and interpretive caveats

Abstract: Components of heart rate variability have attracted considerable attention in psychology and medicine and have become important dependent measures in psychophysiology and behavioral medicine. Quantification and interpretation of heart rate variability, however, remain complex issues and are fraught with pitfalls. The present report (a) examines the physiological origins and mechanisms of heart rate variability, (b) considers quantitative approaches to measurement, and (c) highlights important caveats in the interpretation of heart rate variability. Summary guidelines for research in this area are outlined, and suggestions and prospects for future developments are considered.

Differential Contribution of Amygdala and Hippocampus to Cued and Contextual Fear Conditioning

Abstract: The contribution of the amygdala and hippocampus to the acquisition of conditioned fear responses to a cue (a tone paired with footshock) and to context (background stimuli continuously present in the apparatus in which tone-shock pairings occurred) was examined in rats. In unoperated controls, responses to the cue conditioned faster and were more resistant to extinction than were responses to contextual stimuli. Lesions of the amygdala interfered with the conditioning of fear responses to both the cue and the context, whereas lesions of the hippocampus interfered with conditioning to the context but not to the cue. The amygdala is thus involved in the conditioning of fear responses to simple, modality-specific conditioned stimuli as well as to complex, polymodal stimuli, whereas the hippocampus is only involved in fear conditioning situations involving complex, polymodal events. These findings suggest an associative role for the amygdala and a sensory relay role for the hippocampus in fear conditioning.

Emotion Circuits in the Brain

Abstract: The field of neuroscience has, after a long period of looking the other way, again embraced emotion as an important research area. Much of the progress has come from studies of fear, and especially...

Heart rate variability: a review

Abstract: Heart rate variability (HRV) is a reliable reflection of the many physiological factors modulating the normal rhythm of the heart. In fact, they provide a powerful means of observing the interplay between the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. It shows that the structure generating the signal is not only simply linear, but also involves nonlinear contributions. Heart rate (HR) is a nonstationary signal; its variation may contain indicators of current disease, or warnings about impending cardiac diseases. The indicators may be present at all times or may occur at random-during certain intervals of the day. It is strenuous and time consuming to study and pinpoint abnormalities in voluminous data collected over several hours. Hence, HR variation analysis (instantaneous HR against time axis) has become a popular noninvasive tool for assessing the activities of the autonomic nervous system. Computer based analytical tools for in-depth study of data over daylong intervals can be very useful in diagnostics. Therefore, the HRV signal parameters, extracted and analyzed using computers, are highly useful in diagnostics. In this paper, we have discussed the various applications of HRV and different linear, frequency domain, wavelet domain, nonlinear techniques used for the analysis of the HRV.