Hair cortisol as a biological marker of chronic stress: Current status, future directions and unanswered questions

Russell, Elizabeth M.; Koren, Gideon; Rieder, Michael J.; Uum, Stan Van

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.09.009

Cited by 818 publications

(738 citation statements)

References 70 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

705

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Many of these applications fall within several major themes aimed at determining how long-term HPA activity is related to chronic stress, endocrine disorders such as Cushing's disease, or neuropsychiatric disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder 2,[17][18][19] . Other studies have used hair CORT to examine HPA axis function in relation to behavioral temperament, normal development, the influence of developmental factors such as early childhood experiences in humans or different rearing conditions in monkeys, environmental conservation of wild-living animals, and retrospective investigation of historical or archival samples.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extraction and Analysis of Cortisol from Human and Monkey Hair

Meyer

Novak

Hamel

et al. 2014

JoVE

127

150

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The stress hormone cortisol (CORT) is slowly incorporated into the growing hair shaft of humans, nonhuman primates, and other mammals. We developed and validated a method for CORT extraction and analysis from rhesus monkey hair and subsequently adapted this method for use with human scalp hair. In contrast to CORT "point samples" obtained from plasma or saliva, hair CORT provides an integrated measure of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) system activity, and thus physiological stress, during the period of hormone incorporation. Because human scalp hair grows at an average rate of 1 cm/month, CORT levels obtained from hair segments several cm in length can potentially serve as a biomarker of stress experienced over a number of months.In our method, each hair sample is first washed twice in isopropanol to remove any CORT from the outside of the hair shaft that has been deposited from sweat or sebum. After drying, the sample is ground to a fine powder to break up the hair's protein matrix and increase the surface area for extraction. CORT from the interior of the hair shaft is extracted into methanol, the methanol is evaporated, and the extract is reconstituted in assay buffer. Extracted CORT, along with standards and quality controls, is then analyzed by means of a sensitive and specific commercially available enzyme immunoassay (EIA) kit. Readout from the EIA is converted to pg CORT per mg powdered hair weight. This method has been used in our laboratory to analyze hair CORT in humans, several species of macaque monkeys, marmosets, dogs, and polar bears. Many studies both from our lab and from other research groups have demonstrated the broad applicability of hair CORT for assessing chronic stress exposure in natural as well as laboratory settings. Video LinkThe video component of this article can be found at

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Extraction and Analysis of Cortisol from Human and Monkey Hair

Meyer

Novak

Hamel

et al. 2014

JoVE

127

150

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Traditional collection through saliva, blood or urine is limited by sensitivity to diurnal cortisol changes, acute stress and consumption. HCC from a 3cm sample of scalp hair can reflect the past 3 months of cortisol secretion, offering a stable and feasible measure of chronic stress (Gow et al, 2010;Russell et al, 2012;.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hair cortisol and self-reported stress in healthy, working adults

Gidlow

Randall²,

Gillman

et al. 2016

Psychoneuroendocrinology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Chronic stress can be important in the pathology of chronic disease. Hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) are proposed to reflect long term cortisol secretion from exposure to stress. To date, inconsistencies in the relationship between HCC and self-reported stress have been attributed to variation and limitations of perceived stress measurement. We report data from employees of two large public sector worksites (n=132). Socio-demographic, health, lifestyle, Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and work-related Effort Reward Imbalance (ERI) were collected at baseline. Participants were asked to respond to mobile text messages every two days, asking them to report current stress levels (Ecological Momentary Assessment, EMA), and mean stress was determined overall, during work hours, and out of work hours. At 12 weeks, the Appraisal of Stressful Life Events Scale (ALES) was completed and 3cm scalp hair samples were taken, from which HCC was determined (to reflect cortisol secretion over the past 12 weeks). Mean response rate to EMA was 81.9±14.9%. Associations between HCC and the various self-reported stress measures (adjusted for use of hair dye) were weak (all <.3). We observed significant associations with HCC for EMA measured stress responses received out of work hours (ρ=.196, p=.013) and ALES Loss subscale (ρ=.241, p=.003), and two individual items from ERI (relating to future work situation). In regression analysis adjusting for other possible confounders, only the HCC-ALES Loss association remained significant (p=.011). Overall, our study confirms that EMA provides a useful measurement tool that can gather perceived stress measures in real-time. But, there was no relationship between self-reported stress collected in this way, and HCC. The modest association between HCC and stress appraisal does however, provide some evidence for the role of cognitive processes in chronic stress.

show abstract

“…No significant differences were found with respect to the level of hair cortisol, which is believed to be a chronic stress indicator, as it represents the summary of stressful events occurring over a certain period of time, and therefore gives long-term information both on humans and animals (Russel et al 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

A study on some welfare-related parameters of hDAF transgenic pigs when compared with their conventional close relatives

Martelli

Sardi

Stancampiano

et al. 2014

Animal

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Pigs are increasingly used in medical research as transgenic laboratory animals; however, little knowledge is presently available concerning their welfare assessment. The aim of the present study was to investigate some welfare-related parameters of transgenic pigs intended for xenotrasplantation (human decay-accelerating factor (hDAF)) when compared with their conventional (i.e. not transgenic) close relatives (full sibs and half sibs). A total of 14 Large White female transgenic pigs and 10 female non-transgenic (conventional) pigs from four litters were used. All pigs were from the same conventional boar, donor of the semen treated for sperm-mediated gene transfer. During the experiment, BW ranged from 50 to about 80 kg and pigs were weighed at the beginning and at the end of the experiment. Animals were subjected to a set of behavioural tests: a human approach test (HAT), a novel object test (NOT) and an open-door test (ODT). Food preferences were tested through the offer of different foods (banana, apple, carrot, cracker and lemon). During a 4-day period, pigs were diurnally videotaped to study the prevalence of the different behaviours and social interactions (aggressive and non-aggressive interactions). At the end of the trial, cortisol level had been assessed on bristles. No significant differences ( P > 0.05) were observed between hDAF transgenic and conventional pigs with respect to growth traits, reactivity towards unexpected situations (HAT, NOT, ODT), food preferences, main behavioural traits, social interactions and hair cortisol.

show abstract

Hair cortisol as a biological marker of chronic stress: Current status, future directions and unanswered questions

Cited by 818 publications

References 70 publications

Extraction and Analysis of Cortisol from Human and Monkey Hair

Extraction and Analysis of Cortisol from Human and Monkey Hair

Hair cortisol and self-reported stress in healthy, working adults

A study on some welfare-related parameters of hDAF transgenic pigs when compared with their conventional close relatives

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About