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Behavioral Neurobiology of Stress-related Disorders pp 13–24Cite as

The Interface of Stress and the HPA Axis in Behavioural Phenotypes of Mental Illness

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Part of the book series: Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences ((CTBN,volume 18))

Abstract

Abnormalities of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function are one of the most consistent biological findings across several mental disorders, but many of the mechanisms underlying this abnormality as well as the potential contribution to behavioural phenotypes remain only partially understood. Interestingly, evidence suggests a U-curve, with dysregulation of the HPA axis towards both hyper- or hypoactivity manifesting as a risk to mental wellbeing. This review will elaborate on both the clinical and molecular role of the neuroendocrine stress system in depressive, psychotic and post-traumatic stress disorders and present some of the most recent findings that have shed light on the complex interface between environmental stressors, molecular mechanisms and clinical presentation. Crucially, plasticity of the HPA axis confers both vulnerability to adverse events, particularly so in early developmental stages, as well as hope for the treatment of mental disorder, as evidenced by changes in HPA functioning associated with remission of symptoms.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the grant “Persistent Fatigue Induced by Interferon-alpha: A New Immunological Model for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome” from the Medical Research Council (UK) MR/J002739/1. Additional support has been offered by the Commission of European Communities Seventh Framework Programme (Collaborative Project Grant Agreement no. 22963, Mood Inflame); by the National Institute for Health Research Mental Health Biomedical Research Centre in Mental Health at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London; by a grant from the Psychiatry Research Trust, UK (McGregor 97); by Janssen Parmaceutica NV/Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson; and by the Institute of Psychiatry at Kings College London.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, Room 2-055, The James Black Centre 125 Coldharbour Lane, London, SE5 9NU, UK

    David Baumeister & Carmine M. Pariante

  2. Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Integrative Neuroscience and Endocrinology, University of Bristol, Dorothy Hodgkin Building, Whitson Street, Bristol, BS1 3NY, UK

    Stafford L. Lightman

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  1. David Baumeister
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  2. Stafford L. Lightman
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  3. Carmine M. Pariante
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Correspondence to Carmine M. Pariante .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry Kings College London, London, United Kingdom

    Carmine M. Pariante

  2. Family and Community Health Systems, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA

    M. Danet Lapiz-Bluhm

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Baumeister, D., Lightman, S.L., Pariante, C.M. (2014). The Interface of Stress and the HPA Axis in Behavioural Phenotypes of Mental Illness. In: Pariante, C., Lapiz-Bluhm, M. (eds) Behavioral Neurobiology of Stress-related Disorders. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences, vol 18. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2014_304

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