Journal
HORMONES AND BEHAVIOR
Volume 124, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104803
Keywords
HF-rTMS; HPA axis; Stress; Cortisol; HRV
Categories
Funding
- Ghent University [BOF16/GOA/017, BOFSTA2017002501]
- Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness [RTI2018-094627-B-I00]
- Research Foundation Flanders [GOF4619N, FWO18/PDO/174]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The prefrontal cortex, and especially the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex (DLPFC), plays an inhibitory role in the regulation of the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis under stressful situations. Moreover, recent evidence suggests that a sustained DLPFC activation is associated with adaptive stress regulation in anticipation of a stressful event, leading to a reduced stress-induced amygdala response, and facilitating the confrontation with the stressor. However, studies using experimental manipulation of the activity of the DLPFC before a stressor are scarce, and more research is needed to understand the specific role of this brain area in the stress-induced physiological response. This pre-registered study investigated the effect on stress regulation of a single excitatory high frequency (versus sham) repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (HF-rTMS) session over the left DLPFC applied before the Trier Social Stress Test in 75 healthy young women (M = 21.05, SD = 2.60). Heart rate variability (HRV) and salivary cortisol were assessed throughout the experimental protocol. The active HFrTMS and the sham group showed a similar cognitive appraisal of the stress task. No differences in HRV were observed during both the anticipation and the actual confrontation with the stress task and therefore, our results did not reflect DLPFC-related adaptive anticipatory adjustments. Importantly, participants in the active HF-rTMS group showed a lower cortisol response to stress. The effect of left prefrontal HF-rTMS on the stress system provides further critical experimental evidence for the inhibitory role played by the DLPFC in the regulation of the HPA axis.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available