Sex-specific prediction of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity by pituitary volume during adolescence: A longitudinal study from 12 to 17 years of age
Sex-specific prediction of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity by pituitary volume during adolescence: A longitudinal study from 12 to 17 years of age
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DOI：
10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.06.028
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发表时间：
2013-11-01
影响因子：
3.7
通讯作者：
Allen, Nicholas B.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Kaess, Michael;Simmons, Julian G.;Allen, Nicholas B.
Objective: To investigate the longitudinal relationship between pituitary gland volume (PGV) and parameters of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPAA) functioning during adolescence.Methods: Participants were 49 adolescents (19 girls and 30 boys) selected from a larger longitudinal, population-based study of adolescent development. Assessments were conducted at three time points (S1, S2 and S3). MRI sessions were at S1 (age: M = 12.62, SD = 0.45 years) and S3 (M = 16.48, SD = 0.53 years) and multiple assessments of salivary cortisol were undertaken at S2 (M = 15.51, SD = 0.35 years). PGV was measured via previously validated manual tracing methods, and the cortisol awakening response (CAR) and diurnal slope (DSL) were used as indices of HPAA functioning.Results: A significant sex-linked interaction was found for PGV at 51 predicting both CAR (p = 0.025) and DSL (p = 0.009) at 52. Specifically, PGV at Si significantly predicted CAR (p = 0.033) and DSL (p = 0.010) in boys only, with no significant results found for girls. Neither CAR nor DSL at S2 predicted growth of PGV from 51 to S3.Conclusions: PGV in early adolescence predicted HPAA functioning in mid-adolescent boys but not in girls. The results suggest a significant influence of sex-specific development on the relationship between PGV and HPAA activity and reactivity. The findings have potential implications for understanding and interpreting sex-linked and stress related clinical disorders that emerge during mid-to-late adolescence. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
