Gender Differences in Sensitivity of the Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenocortical Axis to Stress Like Stimulation
Abstract
Possible sex differences in the sensitivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. a major component of the stress response, was examined. We initially studied 24 healthy men and 19 healthy women by administering a corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) stimulation test. Each subject was given a bolus injection of ovine CRH at 8:00 P.M. when the HPA axis is normally quiescent, and serial blood samples were taken over a two-hour session. Plasma adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) responses to oCRH were significantly greater among women than among men. In contrast, Cortisol concentrations were similar in both groups, albeit somewhat more prolonged in women. To examine the status of the adrenal cortices, five healthy men and five healthy women underwent a series of ACTH stimulation tests in which graded doses of synthetic ACTH were administered and plasma Cortisol concentrations were measured. There were no differences between men and women in the ACTH-cortisol dose response curves. These findings suggest that although healthy women produce more ACTH compared with healthy men in response to the same hormonal stimulus, they have similar adrenal responses to ACTH. Central corticotropin-releasing activity may be different between men and women and such differences in the central stress response might be implicated in the known epidemiological differences of diseases of stress system dysregulation between men and women.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 05, 1991
- Accession Number
- AD1010997
Entities
People
- William T. Gallucci
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences