REPLY: ADRENOCORTICAL RESPONSIVENESS

Adrenocortical responsiveness to adrenocorticotropin: StAR is ascendant.

The circadian rhythm in glucocorticoid secretion by the adrenal cortex was long considered to be a product and direct reflection of the circadian rhythm of ACTH secretion by the anterior pituitary. However, data have accumulated for several years indicating that changes in circulating ACTH cannot fully explain the adrenal rhythm, and under many conditions there is a dissociation between ACTH an...

Androgenic effects on adrenocortical responsiveness in neonatal rats.

We are increasingly exposed to environmental and occupational hazardous chemicals, which modulate hormonal activity and/or mutagenicity in mammals. In the present study, we investigated the effects of sex-steroid hormones on adrenocortical responsiveness to adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) in neonatal rats. The levels of corticosterone increased with the dose of ACTH in adrenal cells of males...

Glucocorticoid feedback sensitivity and adrenocortical responsiveness in posttraumatic stress disorder.

BACKGROUND Decreased basal cortisol levels have been reported in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). There is evidence for enhanced negative feedback sensitivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in PTSD, which could account for this, but other possible mechanisms have not been ruled out. We examined the HPA axis employing a metyrapone-cortisol infusion protoco...

The Authors’ Reply

The Authors’ Reply