Effects of Exposure to Stressors of Varying Predictability on Adrenal Function in Rats

For 5 days, rats were exposed to shocks that were signalled by a light 0, 33, 66, or 100% of the time. Basal hormone levels and responses to a light-shock pair were measured daily. Greater predictability was associated with higher basal plasma corticosterone and norepinephrine levels indicative of c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Behavioral neuroscience 1995-08, Vol.109 (4), p.767-776
Main Authors: Pitman, D. L, Natelson, B. H, Ottenweller, J. E, McCarty, R, Pritzel, T, Tapp, W. N
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adrenal glands
Adrenal Glands - innervation
Animal
Animals
Arousal - physiology
Association Learning - physiology
Behavioral psychophysiology
Biochemistry
Biological and medical sciences
Conditioning, Classical - physiology
Corticosterone
Corticosterone - blood
Epinephrine
Epinephrine - blood
Fear - physiology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Hormones and behavior
Male
Norepinephrine
Norepinephrine - blood
Prolactin
Prolactin - blood
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Rats
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Rodents
Stimulus Novelty
Stress
Stress Reactions
Stress, Psychological - complications
Sympathetic Nervous System - physiology
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Summary:For 5 days, rats were exposed to shocks that were signalled by a light 0, 33, 66, or 100% of the time. Basal hormone levels and responses to a light-shock pair were measured daily. Greater predictability was associated with higher basal plasma corticosterone and norepinephrine levels indicative of chronic stress. Habituation of the corticosterone response was also less in the groups with greater predictability. However, predictability did not affect plasma prolactin or epinephrine responses. Because the endocrine systems responded differently, it is unlikely that the changes were due to a unitary process. Greater predictability appeared to be more stressful in this paradigm. Both associative and nonassociative factors have major roles in determining the hormonal responses to repeated presentation of stressors.
ISSN:0735-7044
1939-0084
DOI:10.1037/0735-7044.109.4.767