Circulating cytokine signatures in healthy medical students exposed to academic examination stress

• Published in: Psychophysiology 2012-07, Vol.49 (7), p.991-997
• Main Authors: Kamezaki, Yoshiko, Katsuura, Sakurako, Kuwano, Yuki, Tanahashi, Toshihito, Rokutan, Kazuhito
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Anxiety; Anxiety - blood; Anxiety - metabolism; Competency tests; Cytokines; Cytokines - blood; Cytokines - metabolism; Educational Measurement; Examination stress; Female; Healthy medical students; Humans; Hydrocortisone - metabolism; Inflammation Mediators - blood; Inflammation Mediators - metabolism; Male; Mental distress; Physiological psychology; Proinflammatory cytokine; Saliva - metabolism; Stress response; Stress, Psychological - blood; Stress, Psychological - metabolism; Students, Medical; Th2 cytokine
• ISSN: 0048-5772; 1469-8986; 1540-5958
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-8986.2012.01371.x

Stress‐induced production of proinflammatory cytokines in the brain and periphery is associated with mental distress. In this study, we measured changes in levels of salivary cortisol and 50 circulating immune mediators in 28 4th‐grade medical students (19 males and 9 females) 7 weeks before, 1 day before, immediately after, and 1 week after an authorized nationwide examination for promotion. Repeated measures ANOVA with multiple testing correction and post hoc tests revealed that the examination significantly increased levels of proinflammatory cytokines (granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor, interferon‐γ, interleukin (IL)‐1β, and tumor necrosis factor‐α), Th2 cytokines (IL‐4, IL‐5, and IL‐13), and β‐nerve growth factor in association with significant decreases in salivary cortisol levels and anxiety after the examination. These mediators may have a negative impact on the mental state of healthy young adults exposed to naturalistic stressors.