Endocrine Abstracts

Although stressors generally reduce the intake of boring but healthy foods (chow for rats), both acute and repeated restraint stress increase the intake of highly palatable calories (32% sucrose, lard), when they are available. This behavioural effect is mediated by elevated glucocorticoids, and depends on the accompanying increase in circulating insulin concentrations. In the periphery, whereas glucocorticoids mobilize stored calories and greatly increase the rate of gluconeo...

Stressors engage a neural stress response network that is mediated in large part through the immediate actions of the stimuli on corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neurons in the amygdala (CeA) and in the long-term by the actions of glucocorticoids (GC) on increased synthesis of CRF in CeA and secretion of CRF on the monoaminergic cell groups as well as forebrain. The consequences of this bias behavioral, autonomic and endocrine outputs in the stressed organism. However, the...