Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-09-25DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100320
Klara Greffin , Marlene Muehlmann , Anna Pauleikhoff , Bita Stelling , Holger Muehlan , Michael Stach , Silke Schmidt , Samuel Tomczyk
Background
Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) have shown promise as potential solutions for mitigating the negative health impacts of menopause. However, there is a lack of standardized expert and user ratings regarding the quality of these apps, making it difficult to provide evidence-based recommendations. Therefore, this app review aimed to summarize the currently available mHealth apps for menopause in Germany. Subsequently, the identified apps were evaluated, and their quality was assessed.
Methods
A web crawler was used to search for mHealth apps related to the predefined search criteria, and information for all included apps was extracted (year of search: 2021). In the second step, healthcare providers and individuals experiencing menopause tested and evaluated the apps using the German version of the Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS-G).
Results
The initial search yielded 6917 apps. Of these, 6879 were excluded, 32 duplicates were removed, three were available only in English, and one was designed for a specific drug treatment. The two remaining apps, Femilog and Mimeno, received low expert ratings (n = 2) for engagement, therapeutic gain, and subjective quality. In the user ratings (n = 4), both apps received average scores across all MARS-G scales.
Conclusion
This app review identified two mHealth apps for menopause in German that met the inclusion criteria. Both apps were found to have poor perceived therapeutic gain and received mixed ratings and recommendations from experts and users. Further studies on user experience and efficacy are necessary to make evidence-based recommendations regarding mHealth apps for individuals experiencing menopause.
{"title":"Embracing change: Navigating menopause with the help of mobile health apps in Germany","authors":"Klara Greffin , Marlene Muehlmann , Anna Pauleikhoff , Bita Stelling , Holger Muehlan , Michael Stach , Silke Schmidt , Samuel Tomczyk","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100320","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100320","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) have shown promise as potential solutions for mitigating the negative health impacts of menopause. However, there is a lack of standardized expert and user ratings regarding the quality of these apps, making it difficult to provide evidence-based recommendations. Therefore, this app review aimed to summarize the currently available mHealth apps for menopause in Germany. Subsequently, the identified apps were evaluated, and their quality was assessed.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A web crawler was used to search for mHealth apps related to the predefined search criteria, and information for all included apps was extracted (year of search: 2021). In the second step, healthcare providers and individuals experiencing menopause tested and evaluated the apps using the German version of the Mobile Application Rating Scale (MARS-G).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The initial search yielded 6917 apps. Of these, 6879 were excluded, 32 duplicates were removed, three were available only in English, and one was designed for a specific drug treatment. The two remaining apps, Femilog and Mimeno, received low expert ratings (<em>n</em> = 2) for engagement, therapeutic gain, and subjective quality. In the user ratings (<em>n</em> = 4), both apps received average scores across all MARS-G scales.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>This app review identified two mHealth apps for menopause in German that met the inclusion criteria. Both apps were found to have poor perceived therapeutic gain and received mixed ratings and recommendations from experts and users. Further studies on user experience and efficacy are necessary to make evidence-based recommendations regarding mHealth apps for individuals experiencing menopause.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100320"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145219077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-08-12DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100314
Sebastian Laufer , Johannes Bohn , Sinha Engel , Hannah Klusmann , Nadine Skoluda , Urs M. Nater , Christine Knaevelsrud , Sarah Schumacher
<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Poor sleep quality is a persistent and debilitating symptom of major depressive disorder (MDD), with dysregulations in the biological stress system constituting a potential underlying physiological mechanism. Accordingly, a psychotherapeutic intervention may affect the interplay between sleep quality, MDD and the biological stress system.We examined how basal cortisol, and alpha-amylase levels correspond to perceived sleep quality during an internet-based intervention for MDD. Furthermore, we investigated how changes in sleep quality during the intervention relate to changes in these biological stress system markers. We hypothesized that: 1) short-term and long-term sleep quality would improve during the intervention, 2a) across assessment time points, poor sleep quality would be associated with higher cortisol and alpha-amylase concentrations, and 2b) pre-to-post intervention improvements in sleep quality (treatment response) would be associated with pre-to-post decreases in both biological markers, compared to non-response.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We analyzed forty-one participants (age: 35 ± 12y; females: 82.6 %) suffering from mild to moderate MDD. The cognitive behavioral internet-based intervention consisted of seven weekly writing-based modules with individualized feedback. Participants collected 12 saliva samples at home over two consecutive weekdays at pre-, mid-, and post-intervention. Outcome parameters of the cortisol and alpha-amylase diurnal profiles were the awakening responses, the total diurnal output, and the diurnal slopes. Self-reported sleep quality was retrospectively assessed for the night before (short-term) and for the two-week period preceding saliva collection (long-term). Treatment response was determined using the reliable change index of the pre-to-post, two-week sleep quality difference scores. Hypotheses 1 and 2a were tested using random intercept hierarchical linear models, Hypothesis 2b was tested using linear regressions with age, biological sex, BMI and medication use on the day of sampling as covariates.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Long-term sleep quality increased significantly from pre-to post-intervention (d = 0.78; p < 0.001), partially confirming Hypothesis 1. Contrary to the expected effect of Hypothesis 2a, poor long-term sleep quality at pre-intervention was associated with a blunted cortisol awakening response (CAR; p < 0.05). Post-hoc analyses showed an association of pre-to-post CAR changes and pre-intervention sleep quality (p < 0.01) indicating that individuals with higher pre-intervention sleep problems, on average, exhibited a pre-to-post increase in the CAR. The responder analyses showed that individuals with a marked pre-to-post sleep quality increase (i.e., responders) showed a higher increase in the CAR, compared to non-responders (p < 0.05), which again ran contrary to the effect proposed in Hypothesis 2b.</div></div><div><h3>
睡眠质量差是重度抑郁症（MDD）的一个持续和衰弱的症状，生物应激系统的失调构成了潜在的潜在生理机制。因此，心理治疗干预可能会影响睡眠质量、重度抑郁症和生物应激系统之间的相互作用。我们研究了在网络干预重度抑郁症期间，基础皮质醇和α -淀粉酶水平如何与感知睡眠质量相对应。此外，我们调查了干预期间睡眠质量的变化与这些生物应激系统标志物的变化之间的关系。我们假设：1)短期和长期睡眠质量将在干预期间得到改善，2a)在评估时间点上，睡眠质量差将与较高的皮质醇和α -淀粉酶浓度相关，2b)与无反应相比，干预前后睡眠质量的改善（治疗反应）将与干预前后两种生物标志物的下降相关。方法对41例轻中度重度抑郁症患者（年龄35±12岁，女性82.6%）进行分析。基于网络的认知行为干预包括七个每周以写作为基础的模块，并提供个性化反馈。参与者在干预前、干预中和干预后连续两个工作日在家中收集了12份唾液样本。皮质醇和α -淀粉酶日剖面的结局参数为觉醒反应、总日输出量和日斜率。回顾性评估自我报告的睡眠质量（短期）和唾液采集前两周（长期）。采用前后两周睡眠质量差异评分的可靠变化指数来确定治疗反应。假设1和2a采用随机截距分层线性模型检验，假设2b采用以年龄、生理性别、BMI和抽样当日用药为协变量的线性回归检验。结果干预前后长期睡眠质量显著提高（d = 0.78; p < 0.001），部分证实了假设1。与假设2a的预期效果相反，干预前长期睡眠质量差与皮质醇觉醒反应减弱有关（CAR; p < 0.05）。事后分析显示，干预前后的CAR变化与干预前的睡眠质量相关（p < 0.01），表明干预前睡眠问题较高的个体，平均而言，在干预前后表现出CAR的增加。应答者分析显示，与无应答者相比，睡眠质量在前后显著提高的个体（即应答者）的CAR增加更高（p < 0.05），这再次与假设2b中提出的效果相反。在心理治疗之前，睡眠质量差的重度抑郁症患者表现出钝化的CAR，这表明这些个体存在低皮质醇血症。此外，干预引起的睡眠质量改变可能导致CAR正常化。
{"title":"Sleep quality and the biological stress system during an internet-based intervention for major depressive disorder","authors":"Sebastian Laufer , Johannes Bohn , Sinha Engel , Hannah Klusmann , Nadine Skoluda , Urs M. Nater , Christine Knaevelsrud , Sarah Schumacher","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100314","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100314","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Poor sleep quality is a persistent and debilitating symptom of major depressive disorder (MDD), with dysregulations in the biological stress system constituting a potential underlying physiological mechanism. Accordingly, a psychotherapeutic intervention may affect the interplay between sleep quality, MDD and the biological stress system.We examined how basal cortisol, and alpha-amylase levels correspond to perceived sleep quality during an internet-based intervention for MDD. Furthermore, we investigated how changes in sleep quality during the intervention relate to changes in these biological stress system markers. We hypothesized that: 1) short-term and long-term sleep quality would improve during the intervention, 2a) across assessment time points, poor sleep quality would be associated with higher cortisol and alpha-amylase concentrations, and 2b) pre-to-post intervention improvements in sleep quality (treatment response) would be associated with pre-to-post decreases in both biological markers, compared to non-response.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We analyzed forty-one participants (age: 35 ± 12y; females: 82.6 %) suffering from mild to moderate MDD. The cognitive behavioral internet-based intervention consisted of seven weekly writing-based modules with individualized feedback. Participants collected 12 saliva samples at home over two consecutive weekdays at pre-, mid-, and post-intervention. Outcome parameters of the cortisol and alpha-amylase diurnal profiles were the awakening responses, the total diurnal output, and the diurnal slopes. Self-reported sleep quality was retrospectively assessed for the night before (short-term) and for the two-week period preceding saliva collection (long-term). Treatment response was determined using the reliable change index of the pre-to-post, two-week sleep quality difference scores. Hypotheses 1 and 2a were tested using random intercept hierarchical linear models, Hypothesis 2b was tested using linear regressions with age, biological sex, BMI and medication use on the day of sampling as covariates.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Long-term sleep quality increased significantly from pre-to post-intervention (d = 0.78; p < 0.001), partially confirming Hypothesis 1. Contrary to the expected effect of Hypothesis 2a, poor long-term sleep quality at pre-intervention was associated with a blunted cortisol awakening response (CAR; p < 0.05). Post-hoc analyses showed an association of pre-to-post CAR changes and pre-intervention sleep quality (p < 0.01) indicating that individuals with higher pre-intervention sleep problems, on average, exhibited a pre-to-post increase in the CAR. The responder analyses showed that individuals with a marked pre-to-post sleep quality increase (i.e., responders) showed a higher increase in the CAR, compared to non-responders (p < 0.05), which again ran contrary to the effect proposed in Hypothesis 2b.</div></div><div><h3>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100314"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144865115","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-10-15DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100323
Xiang Tang , Shuyuan Li , Hongjiang Liu , Yong Ge , Deju Zhou , Teng Sun , Cheng Zhang , Shoujie Feng , Hao Zhang
Purpose
The evaluation of cognitive function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is critical. This study aimed to construct a risk prediction model capable of predicting the rsik of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in COPD patients using machine learning methods.
Methods
This study enrolled 2142 COPD patients from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), analyzing 16 sociodemographic, health, and psychological indicators. The predictors screened by LASSO regression were integrated with five machine learning models—Logistic Regression, Neural Network, XGBoost, LightGBM, and Random Forest —to identify the optimal model for predicting MCI risk in COPD patients. External validation was conducted using the Health and Retirement Study dataset (HRS). Model performance underwent comprehensive evaluation across three critical dimensions: discrimination capacity (AUC-ROC), calibration accuracy (Brier score and calibration curves), and clinical applicability (decision curve analysis). Additionally, the SHAP method was employed to elucidate the feature contributions to the final model.
Results
The analysis included 2142 COPD patients, of whom 420 were diagnosed with MCI. 11 predictive variables were selected to construct five machine learning algorithms. Among these, the LightGBM model demonstrated superior performance across all evaluation dimensions - including discrimination capacity, calibration accuracy, and clinical utility - achieving AUROC values ranging from 0.722 to 0.782.The eight most significant features for predicting MCI in COPD patients were sex, residence, instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) score, educational level, social activity engagement, marital status, Internet use and depression.
Conclusion
The machine learning model accurately predicts MCI risk in COPD patients, enabling timely clinical interventions and improved care through early identification of high-risk individuals.
{"title":"Using machine learning models to predict the risk of mild cognitive impairment for COPD patients: A multi-cohort study","authors":"Xiang Tang , Shuyuan Li , Hongjiang Liu , Yong Ge , Deju Zhou , Teng Sun , Cheng Zhang , Shoujie Feng , Hao Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100323","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100323","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Purpose</h3><div>The evaluation of cognitive function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is critical. This study aimed to construct a risk prediction model capable of predicting the rsik of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in COPD patients using machine learning methods.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>This study enrolled 2142 COPD patients from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS), analyzing 16 sociodemographic, health, and psychological indicators. The predictors screened by LASSO regression were integrated with five machine learning models—Logistic Regression, Neural Network, XGBoost, LightGBM, and Random Forest —to identify the optimal model for predicting MCI risk in COPD patients. External validation was conducted using the Health and Retirement Study dataset (HRS). Model performance underwent comprehensive evaluation across three critical dimensions: discrimination capacity (AUC-ROC), calibration accuracy (Brier score and calibration curves), and clinical applicability (decision curve analysis). Additionally, the SHAP method was employed to elucidate the feature contributions to the final model.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The analysis included 2142 COPD patients, of whom 420 were diagnosed with MCI. 11 predictive variables were selected to construct five machine learning algorithms. Among these, the LightGBM model demonstrated superior performance across all evaluation dimensions - including discrimination capacity, calibration accuracy, and clinical utility - achieving AUROC values ranging from 0.722 to 0.782.The eight most significant features for predicting MCI in COPD patients were sex, residence, instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) score, educational level, social activity engagement, marital status, Internet use and depression.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>The machine learning model accurately predicts MCI risk in COPD patients, enabling timely clinical interventions and improved care through early identification of high-risk individuals.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100323"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145362202","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-09-05DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100316
Benedict Herhaus, Liza Mekschrat, Katja Petrowski
Objective
Obesity has been associated with abnormalities of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA)-axis. The aim of this study was to investigate patterns of cortisol stress reactivity and basal resting levels in individuals with obesity and healthy weight controls.
Methods
Forty-seven individuals with obesity (BMI: 33.60 ± 4.09 kg/m2) and 47 age- and gender-matched healthy weight controls (BMI: 22.58 ± 1.89 kg/m2) underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and a resting condition. Based on the salivary cortisol measurement during the TSST, individuals with obesity and the healthy weight controls were categorized into high/low cortisol reactivity group.
Results
Obese low cortisol reactors demonstrated significantly lower basal cortisol resting levels compared to obese high cortisol reactors and healthy weight high/low cortisol reactors (F(1,90) = 7.780, p ≤ .001, η2 = .21). In individuals with obesity, we found an overlap between the high cortisol reactivity group and the high basal cortisol level group in the resting condition as well as between the low cortisol reactivity group and the low basal cortisol level group during the resting condition (x2 = 7.671, df = 1, p ≤ .01, Cramér's V = .40). This overlap could not be observed in the healthy weight controls.
Conclusions
In conclusion, patterns of cortisol stress reactivity and basal resting levels were observed in the individuals with obesity but not in the healthy weight controls. The present data suggest that obesity may lead to the phenomenon of basal hypocortisolism.
{"title":"Phenomenon of hypocortisolism in individuals with obesity","authors":"Benedict Herhaus, Liza Mekschrat, Katja Petrowski","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100316","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100316","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objective</h3><div>Obesity has been associated with abnormalities of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA)-axis. The aim of this study was to investigate patterns of cortisol stress reactivity and basal resting levels in individuals with obesity and healthy weight controls.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Forty-seven individuals with obesity (BMI: 33.60 ± 4.09 kg/m<sup>2</sup>) and 47 age- and gender-matched healthy weight controls (BMI: 22.58 ± 1.89 kg/m<sup>2</sup>) underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and a resting condition. Based on the salivary cortisol measurement during the TSST, individuals with obesity and the healthy weight controls were categorized into high/low cortisol reactivity group.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Obese low cortisol reactors demonstrated significantly lower basal cortisol resting levels compared to obese high cortisol reactors and healthy weight high/low cortisol reactors (<em>F</em><sub>(1,90)</sub> = 7.780, <em>p</em> ≤ .001, <em>η2</em> = .21). In individuals with obesity, we found an overlap between the high cortisol reactivity group and the high basal cortisol level group in the resting condition as well as between the low cortisol reactivity group and the low basal cortisol level group during the resting condition (<em>x</em><sup><em>2</em></sup> = 7.671, <em>df</em> = 1, <em>p</em> ≤ .01, Cramér's V = .40). This overlap could not be observed in the healthy weight controls.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>In conclusion, patterns of cortisol stress reactivity and basal resting levels were observed in the individuals with obesity but not in the healthy weight controls. The present data suggest that obesity may lead to the phenomenon of basal hypocortisolism.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100316"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145003980","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-09-17DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100318
Jayeun Kim , Kyuhyun Yoon , Ji-Eun Park
This study aimed to examine the associations between insufficient sleep and health outcomes, specifically depressive symptoms and obesity, using data from the 2020 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) with a cross-sectional study design. A total of 5912 participants (2648 men and 3264 women) were included. Among them, 823 individuals (13.9 %) experienced difficulty with weekday sleep deprivation, and 442 individuals (7.5 %) exhibited weekday-weekend sleep mismatch. The mean sleep duration varied according to age group, underlying disease, and physical activity level. Individuals with sleep deprivation were more likely to have depressive symptoms (OR 3.21, 95 % CI 2.65–3.90) and obesity (OR 1.29, 95 % CI 1.07–1.754). On the basis of these findings, both the duration and regularity of sleep are associated with depressive symptoms and obesity, suggesting that sleep patterns may play important roles in these health outcomes.
本研究旨在研究睡眠不足与健康结果（特别是抑郁症状和肥胖）之间的关系，使用的数据来自2020年韩国国家健康与营养检查调查（KNHANES），采用横断面研究设计。总共包括5912名参与者（2648名男性和3264名女性）。其中，823人（13.9%）在工作日睡眠剥夺方面存在困难，442人（7.5%）表现出工作日与周末的睡眠不匹配。平均睡眠时间因年龄组、潜在疾病和体力活动水平而异。睡眠不足的个体更有可能出现抑郁症状（OR 3.21, 95% CI 2.65-3.90）和肥胖（OR 1.29, 95% CI 1.07-1.754）。基于这些发现，睡眠的持续时间和规律性都与抑郁症状和肥胖有关，这表明睡眠模式可能在这些健康结果中起着重要作用。
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Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-11-23DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100328
Patricia M. Pehme , Wai M. Wong , Corina Lesseur , Joshua C. Brumberg , Yoko Nomura
Objective
Given the role of sympathetic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in trauma transmission and oxytocin's stress buffering effects, this study examined whether placental oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene expression differs by maternal trauma exposure status.
Methods
A sample (N = 152) was drawn from a longitudinal birth cohort. OXTR was quantified using nCounter platform as expressed or unexpressed. Maternal trauma exposure was assessed via validated questionnaire and categorized into four groups: before pregnancy trauma, Superstorm Sandy exposure during pregnancy, both, or neither (reference). Logistic regression and synergy index (SI) were calculated to examine individual and additive interaction effects.
Results
In the proportion of samples with detectable OXTR, neither individual exposure significantly altered placental OXTR expression. However, both traumas exposure group had an over a 6-fold increase (OR = 6.13, p = .01) compared to the reference. The SI was 2.17 suggesting that the combined effect of both traumas exceeded the sum of their individual effects on placental OXTR expression.
Conclusion
Given oxytocin linked placental adaptations to cope with consequences of stress, this greater-than-additive modification, as evidenced by the synergy index, suggests trauma exposure before pregnancy fundamentally changes how the placenta responds to disaster exposure during pregnancy in anticipation of harsh external conditions.
目的通过探讨交感神经系统和下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴在创伤传递和催产素应激缓冲中的作用，探讨胎盘催产素受体（OXTR）基因表达是否因母体创伤暴露状态而异。方法从纵向出生队列中抽取样本152例。使用nCounter平台定量OXTR，分为表达或未表达。通过有效的问卷对产妇的创伤暴露进行评估，并将其分为四组：怀孕前的创伤、怀孕期间的飓风桑迪暴露、两者都暴露或两者都不暴露（参考文献）。计算逻辑回归和协同指数（SI）来检验个体和加性相互作用效应。结果在可检测到OXTR的样本中，个体暴露均未显著改变胎盘OXTR的表达。然而，与参考组相比，两个创伤暴露组都增加了6倍以上（OR = 6.13, p = 0.01）。SI为2.17，表明两种创伤对胎盘OXTR表达的综合影响超过其单独影响的总和。综上所述，鉴于催产素与胎盘适应应激有关，这种大于添加剂的改变表明，怀孕前的创伤暴露从根本上改变了胎盘在怀孕期间对恶劣外部条件的灾难暴露的反应。
{"title":"Before pregnancy trauma primes oxytocin receptor expression in placenta during superstorm sandy","authors":"Patricia M. Pehme , Wai M. Wong , Corina Lesseur , Joshua C. Brumberg , Yoko Nomura","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100328","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100328","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objective</h3><div>Given the role of sympathetic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in trauma transmission and oxytocin's stress buffering effects, this study examined whether placental oxytocin receptor (<em>OXTR</em>) gene expression differs by maternal trauma exposure status.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A sample (N = 152) was drawn from a longitudinal birth cohort. <em>OXTR</em> was quantified using nCounter platform as expressed or unexpressed. Maternal trauma exposure was assessed via validated questionnaire and categorized into four groups: before pregnancy trauma, Superstorm Sandy exposure during pregnancy, both, or neither (reference). Logistic regression and synergy index (SI) were calculated to examine individual and additive interaction effects.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>In the proportion of samples with detectable <em>OXTR,</em> neither individual exposure significantly altered placental <em>OXTR</em> expression. However, both traumas exposure group had an over a 6-fold increase (OR = 6.13, <em>p</em> = .01) compared to the reference. The SI was 2.17 suggesting that the combined effect of both traumas exceeded the sum of their individual effects on placental <em>OXTR</em> expression.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Given oxytocin linked placental adaptations to cope with consequences of stress, this greater-than-additive modification, as evidenced by the synergy index, suggests trauma exposure before pregnancy fundamentally changes how the placenta responds to disaster exposure during pregnancy in anticipation of harsh external conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100328"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145693326","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-11-04DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100325
Konsta Kuusento , Susanna Kortesluoma , Saana Myllyntausta , Jussi Vahtera , Linnea Karlsson , Sari Stenholm
Objectives
Retirement is a significant life event involving removal of work stress and changes in other psychological factors. These changes may induce physiological responses in the body, such as changes in levels of the stress hormone cortisol, but no previous studies exist on the topic. The aim of this study was to examine changes in hair cortisol concentration and the associated work-related factors during the retirement transition.
Methods
One hundred and ninety-nine workers from the Finnish Retirement and Aging study participated in annual hair sampling before and after the retirement transition. Hair cortisol concentration was measured using mass spectrometry. Work-related factors were examined through survey measures. Latent trajectory analysis was used to investigate the heterogeneity of the changes in hair cortisol concentration during the retirement transition.
Results
The study population had a mean age of 63.1 (SD 1.1) years and 92 % were women. Three trajectory groups for hair cortisol changes were identified: ”stable low” (79 %), “fluctuating” (6 %) and “post-retirement increase” (15 %). ”Post-retirement increase” group consisted of older participants compared to the “stable low” and “fluctuating” groups. No significant differences in exposure to work-related stressors were found between the groups.
Conclusion
For the majority of the participants, the levels of hair cortisol remained relatively low and stable during the retirement transition, but for subgroups of individuals annual fluctuation and post-retirement increase in levels of hair cortisol were observed. Work-related stressors were not found to explain the variability, thus further research on changes in hair cortisol changes during retirement is warranted.
{"title":"Changes in hair cortisol during retirement transition: the Finnish retirement and aging study","authors":"Konsta Kuusento , Susanna Kortesluoma , Saana Myllyntausta , Jussi Vahtera , Linnea Karlsson , Sari Stenholm","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100325","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100325","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objectives</h3><div>Retirement is a significant life event involving removal of work stress and changes in other psychological factors. These changes may induce physiological responses in the body, such as changes in levels of the stress hormone cortisol, but no previous studies exist on the topic. The aim of this study was to examine changes in hair cortisol concentration and the associated work-related factors during the retirement transition.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>One hundred and ninety-nine workers from the Finnish Retirement and Aging study participated in annual hair sampling before and after the retirement transition. Hair cortisol concentration was measured using mass spectrometry. Work-related factors were examined through survey measures. Latent trajectory analysis was used to investigate the heterogeneity of the changes in hair cortisol concentration during the retirement transition.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>The study population had a mean age of 63.1 (SD 1.1) years and 92 % were women. Three trajectory groups for hair cortisol changes were identified: ”stable low” (79 %), “fluctuating” (6 %) and “post-retirement increase” (15 %). ”Post-retirement increase” group consisted of older participants compared to the “stable low” and “fluctuating” groups. No significant differences in exposure to work-related stressors were found between the groups.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>For the majority of the participants, the levels of hair cortisol remained relatively low and stable during the retirement transition, but for subgroups of individuals annual fluctuation and post-retirement increase in levels of hair cortisol were observed. Work-related stressors were not found to explain the variability, thus further research on changes in hair cortisol changes during retirement is warranted.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100325"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145465994","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-12-06DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100331
Rose-Marie Bluthe
{"title":"Thirty-three years of editorial work. A lifetime adventure","authors":"Rose-Marie Bluthe","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100331","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100331","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100331"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145747326","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-10-11DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100322
Kory Dees , Kayla Kabir , Roxana Bahani , Christopher Beskow , Matthew Blalock , Ethan Burton , Jessica Kranzlein , Danielle Pierson , Shannon Rice , Marietta Williams , Kari J. Dugger
Background
Epidemiological studies suggest that heightened psychological stress is associated with poor breast cancer outcomes, while regular physical activity is presumed to improve patient prognosis. These correlations raise the question of whether aerobic exercise might offset the detrimental effects of psychological stress on cancer progression. Neuroendocrine changes during stress are believed to alter anti-tumor immune responses, potentially influencing cancer outcomes.
Objective
This study investigated the impact of psychological stress and/or aerobic exercise on tumor growth and anti-tumor immunity in a syngeneic mouse model of breast cancer.
Methods
Female BALB/c mice were subcutaneously injected with EMT6 breast carcinoma cells and assigned to one of four treatment groups: moderate aerobic exercise (Ex), unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS), a combination of both (UCMS-Ex), or untreated controls. At study completion, tumor size and immune profiles were assessed.
Results
Tumors were consistently smaller in non-stressed, non-exercised control mice, while both aerobic exercise and chronic mild stress, individually or combined, led to larger tumors. Smaller tumors were associated with increased infiltration of T helper and cytotoxic T cells. Exercise enhanced the proliferative capacity of T helper cells and the suppressive function of regulatory T cells, regardless of chronic stress exposure. Although aerobic exercise alone improved cytotoxic T cell activity, this anti-tumor function was diminished when chronic stress was present.
Conclusions
In summary, neither physical activity nor psychological stress reduced tumor growth once tumors were established; instead, both accelerated tumor progression. While exercise alone enhanced EMT6-specific cytotoxic T cell function, this benefit was lost in the presence of chronic stress. Exercise did not mitigate the tumor-promoting effects of stress or restore impaired anti-tumor immunity. However, our findings in sedentary mice with smaller tumors reinforce the established association between increased intra-tumoral T cell presence and reduced tumor growth.
{"title":"Impact of physical and psychological stressors on tumor growth and immune responses in breast cancer","authors":"Kory Dees , Kayla Kabir , Roxana Bahani , Christopher Beskow , Matthew Blalock , Ethan Burton , Jessica Kranzlein , Danielle Pierson , Shannon Rice , Marietta Williams , Kari J. Dugger","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100322","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100322","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Epidemiological studies suggest that heightened psychological stress is associated with poor breast cancer outcomes, while regular physical activity is presumed to improve patient prognosis. These correlations raise the question of whether aerobic exercise might offset the detrimental effects of psychological stress on cancer progression. Neuroendocrine changes during stress are believed to alter anti-tumor immune responses, potentially influencing cancer outcomes.</div></div><div><h3>Objective</h3><div>This study investigated the impact of psychological stress and/or aerobic exercise on tumor growth and anti-tumor immunity in a syngeneic mouse model of breast cancer.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Female BALB/c mice were subcutaneously injected with EMT6 breast carcinoma cells and assigned to one of four treatment groups: moderate aerobic exercise (Ex), unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS), a combination of both (UCMS-Ex), or untreated controls. At study completion, tumor size and immune profiles were assessed.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Tumors were consistently smaller in non-stressed, non-exercised control mice, while both aerobic exercise and chronic mild stress, individually or combined, led to larger tumors. Smaller tumors were associated with increased infiltration of T helper and cytotoxic T cells. Exercise enhanced the proliferative capacity of T helper cells and the suppressive function of regulatory T cells, regardless of chronic stress exposure. Although aerobic exercise alone improved cytotoxic T cell activity, this anti-tumor function was diminished when chronic stress was present.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>In summary, neither physical activity nor psychological stress reduced tumor growth once tumors were established; instead, both accelerated tumor progression. While exercise alone enhanced EMT6-specific cytotoxic T cell function, this benefit was lost in the presence of chronic stress. Exercise did not mitigate the tumor-promoting effects of stress or restore impaired anti-tumor immunity. However, our findings in sedentary mice with smaller tumors reinforce the established association between increased intra-tumoral T cell presence and reduced tumor growth.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100322"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145362201","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-11-01Epub Date: 2025-10-22DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100324
Wendyrose Smith , Sarah M. Cooney , Akansha M. Naraindas
Introduction
Women's experiences of menopause are shaped not only by biological changes but also by the social contexts in which they occur, such as the workplace. This study examines how psychological, somatic and urogenital menopause symptoms affect occupational self-efficacy, work ability, perceived health and work quality, and perceived workplace support among Irish women.
Methods
A total of 121 participants (Mage = 49.9, SD = 4.9, Range = 37–62) experiencing perimenopausal or postmenopausal symptoms participated in an online survey. Participants completed validated measures assessing menopause symptom severity, occupational self-efficacy, work ability, health and work quality, perceived workplace support, and menopause-related absenteeism.
Results
Psychological symptoms were significantly associated with lower occupational self-efficacy and work ability, whilst somatic and urogenital symptoms were not. Higher psychological, somatic and urogenital symptoms were correlated with multiple health and work quality measures. Organisational support was significantly associated with lower symptom severity. No significant relationships were found between symptom severity and absenteeism or reduced working hours.
Conclusion
Psychological menopause symptoms impact key workplace outcomes, while organisational support appears protective. These findings underscore the importance of menopause-informed policies in promoting the well-being, confidence, and retention of the workforce.
妇女的更年期经历不仅受到生理变化的影响，而且受到发生这些变化的社会环境的影响，例如工作场所。本研究探讨了心理、身体和泌尿生殖器更年期症状如何影响爱尔兰妇女的职业自我效能感、工作能力、感知健康和工作质量以及感知工作场所支持。方法对有围绝经期或绝经后症状的121名参与者（Mage = 49.9, SD = 4.9, Range = 37-62）进行在线调查。参与者完成了评估更年期症状严重程度、职业自我效能、工作能力、健康和工作质量、感知工作场所支持和更年期相关缺勤的有效测量。结果心理症状与职业自我效能和工作能力低下有显著相关性，而躯体症状和泌尿生殖症状与职业自我效能和工作能力低下无显著相关性。较高的心理、躯体和泌尿生殖症状与多项健康和工作质量指标相关。组织支持与较低的症状严重程度显著相关。症状严重程度与缺勤或减少工作时间之间无显著关系。结论心理更年期症状影响关键的工作结果，而组织支持似乎具有保护作用。这些发现强调了更年期知情政策在促进劳动力福祉，信心和保留方面的重要性。
{"title":"The influence of menopause symptoms on workplace mental health among Irish women: A preliminary study","authors":"Wendyrose Smith , Sarah M. Cooney , Akansha M. Naraindas","doi":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100324","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cpnec.2025.100324","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Women's experiences of menopause are shaped not only by biological changes but also by the social contexts in which they occur, such as the workplace. This study examines how psychological, somatic and urogenital menopause symptoms affect occupational self-efficacy, work ability, perceived health and work quality, and perceived workplace support among Irish women.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>A total of 121 participants (Mage = 49.9, SD = 4.9, Range = 37–62) experiencing perimenopausal or postmenopausal symptoms participated in an online survey. Participants completed validated measures assessing menopause symptom severity, occupational self-efficacy, work ability, health and work quality, perceived workplace support, and menopause-related absenteeism.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Psychological symptoms were significantly associated with lower occupational self-efficacy and work ability, whilst somatic and urogenital symptoms were not. Higher psychological, somatic and urogenital symptoms were correlated with multiple health and work quality measures. Organisational support was significantly associated with lower symptom severity. No significant relationships were found between symptom severity and absenteeism or reduced working hours.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Psychological menopause symptoms impact key workplace outcomes, while organisational support appears protective. These findings underscore the importance of menopause-informed policies in promoting the well-being, confidence, and retention of the workforce.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":72656,"journal":{"name":"Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"24 ","pages":"Article 100324"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-11-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145362042","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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