Early life stress and trauma: developmental neuroendocrine aspects of prolonged stress system dysregulation.
Title | Early life stress and trauma: developmental neuroendocrine aspects of prolonged stress system dysregulation. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2018 |
Authors | Agorastos, A., Pervanidou P., Chrousos G. P., & Kolaitis G. |
Journal | Hormones (Athens) |
Volume | 17 |
Issue | 4 |
Pagination | 507-520 |
Date Published | 2018 Dec |
ISSN | 2520-8721 |
Keywords | Autonomic Nervous System Diseases, Endocrine System Diseases, Humans, Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System, Pituitary-Adrenal System, Psychological Trauma, Stress, Psychological |
Abstract | Experience of early life stress (ELS) and trauma is highly prevalent in the general population and has a high public health impact, as it can trigger a health-related risk cascade and lead to impaired homeostatic balance and elevated cacostatic load even decades later. The prolonged neuropsychobiological impact of ELS can, thus, be conceptualized as a common developmental risk factor for disease associated with increased physical and mental morbidity in later life. ELS during critical periods of brain development with elevated neuroplasticity could exert a programming effect on particular neuronal networks related to the stress response and lead to enduring neuroendocrine alterations, i.e., hyper- or hypoactivation of the stress system, associated with adult hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and glucocorticoid signaling dysregulation. This paper reviews the pathophysiology of the human stress response and provides evidence from human research on the most acknowledged stress axis-related neuroendocrine pathways exerting the enduring adverse effects of ELS and mediating the cumulative long-term risk of disease vulnerability in adulthood. |
DOI | 10.1007/s42000-018-0065-x |
Alternate Journal | Hormones (Athens) |
PubMed ID | 30280316 |