Psychoneuroendocrinology
Volume 37, Issue 6, 2012, Pages 810-817

Altered salivary alpha-amylase awakening response in Bosnian War refugees with posttraumatic stress disorder (Article)

Thoma M.V.* , Joksimovic L. , Kirschbaum C. , Wolf J.M. , Rohleder N.
  • a Department of Psychology and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, United States
  • b Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Germany
  • c Lehrstuhl Biopsychologie, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
  • d Department of Psychology and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, United States
  • e Department of Psychology and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, United States

Abstract

In posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), chronic activation of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) has been suggested. No study so far has investigated diurnal secretion patterns of salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) in PTSD, a promising candidate for non-invasive assessment of SNS activity. We compared sAA diurnal profiles between a group of Bosnian War refugees with PTSD and a healthy control group, and further analyzed for associations with psychiatric symptoms and glucocorticoid (GC) sensitivity of inflammatory regulation. PTSD patients showed a sAA awakening response profile that was opposite to those seen in healthy controls, i.e. an increase instead of a sharp decrease. Patterns of sAA secretion were further positively associated with psychiatric symptoms of PTSD. Finally, higher sAA awakening responses were associated with higher GC sensitivity of inflammatory cytokine production. These findings are in line with altered SNS function in PTSD, and lend further support for employing assessment of diurnal sAA profiles as non-invasive biomarkers in stress-related disease. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd.

Author Keywords

posttraumatic stress disorder Sympathetic nervous system SNS Inflammatory regulation Salivary alpha-amylase SAA PTSD

Index Keywords

refugee saliva level chronic stress Wounds and Injuries Saliva human Refugees middle aged Self Report war controlled study priority journal diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders Bosnia-Herzegovina Symptom Checklist 90 Glucocorticoids arousal Humans male female interleukin 6 Harvard Trauma Questionnaire questionnaire clinical article Psychometrics Article Questionnaires adult alpha-Amylases amylase tumor necrosis factor alpha posttraumatic stress disorder amylase release Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic inflammation dexamethasone Cytokines cytokine production Circadian Rhythm
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84859864612&doi=10.1016%2fj.psyneuen.2011.09.013&partnerID=40&md5=2030ac7f0a537020a05e76fd783a76bd
DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.09.013
ISSN: 03064530
Cited by: 33
Original Language: English