Rapid volumetric brain changes after acute psychosocial stress, 2021, Marie Uhlig et al

Rapid volumetric brain changes after acute psychosocial stress

Marie Uhlig, Janis D. Reinelt, Mark E. Lauckner, Deniz Kumral, H. Lina Schaare, Toralf Mildner, Anahit Babayan, Veronika Engert, Arno Villringer, Michael Gaebler

Abstract
"Rapid structural brain plasticity after acute stress has been shown in animals. It is unknown whether such stress-related brain changes also occur in humans, in which they have been found, using structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), after motor learning and visual stimulation. We here investigated grey matter volume (GMV) changes after acute stress in humans and tested their relation to psychophysiological stress measures.

Sixty-seven healthy men (25.8±2.7 years) completed a standardized psychosocial laboratory stressor (Trier Social Stress Test) or a control version while blood, saliva, heart rate, and psychometrics were sampled. T1-weighted MP2RAGE images at 3T MRI were acquired 45 min before and 90 min after intervention onset. GMV changes were analysed using voxel-based morphometry. Associations with endocrine, autonomic, and subjective stress measures were tested with linear models.

We found significant group-by-time interactions in several brain clusters including anterior/mid-cingulate cortices and bilateral insula: GMV was increased in the stress group relative to the control group, in which several clusters showed a GMV decrease. We found no significant group-by-time interaction for other MRI parameters, including cerebral blood flow, but a significant association of GMV changes with state anxiety and heart rate variability changes.

In summary, we show rapid GMV changes following acute psychosocial stress in humans. The results suggest that endogenous circadian brain changes are counteracted by acute stress and generally emphasize the influence of stress on the brain.

Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest."

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.01.470604v1 full text available via tab at link

 

This seems to be saying that you see changes on MRI if you just subject normal healthy people to a bit of a psychological game of 'stress'. Presumably, the level of stress involved is minimal. If anything it might be quite fun, like playing charades.

So these sorts of MRI changes probably tell us nothing whatever about brain plasticity and stress?

Or am I being over sceptical as usual?

 

Someone has to be.

 

What seems surprising is the rapidity and scale of the physiological response - so perhaps a scanning artifact or just increased blood flow.

And maybe it's a study that is only negatively pertinent here because of the 'never demonstrated to be relevant' putative role of stress in ME/CFS.

I did wonder though if the 'normal' brain behaves in this way, then there 'might' be more critical impacts on an ME/CFS brain. I don't think that psychosocial chanllenge is significant other than as the experimental source of systemic stress, and perhaps a comparable endemic stress might be caused by grappling with the physical misfunctions which ME/CFS patients are all to too familiar with.

 

"Stress". I'm sorry but this is not stress in any sense that relates to how it's commonly used. Also it's a common trope that everyone reacts differently to stress so how could there even be a common response? Dogmatic assertions can arbitrarily turn off and on again depending on how convenient they are.

The "stress" of the Trier Social Stress Test:

The first 5 minute component is the anticipatory stress phase, during which the judges ask the participant to prepare a 5 minute presentation. In most studies this presentation is framed as part of a job interview.
...
During the 5 minute presentation component, the judges observe the participant without comment. If the participant does not use the entire 5 minutes, they will ask him or her to continue. This goes on until the entire 5 minutes have been used.
...
The presentation is immediately followed by the mental arithmetic component, during which the participant is asked to count backwards from 1,022 in steps of 13. If a mistake is made, then they must start again from the beginning. This component lasts for 5 minutes and is followed by a recovery period.
...
Immediately after the test is a debriefing, in which the participant is told that the purpose of the test was to create stress, and that the results are in no way a reflection on his or her personal abilities​

Most video games are more "stressful" than this. Hell, most games are. And they are known to be relaxing because they are challenging and fun. Here they challenged people with simple tasks, they did not stress them. No one involved is confused that this is serious, that there are stakes, that this is anything like an actual job interview where your future might depend on how you present yourself.

 

The presentation thing wouldnt stress me at all really, i used to do between 4 & 20 such presentations per day in my job pre illness. its a bit silly really

 

it would only be stressful for those who are socially awkward or have some other health issues. plus people who are on the autistic spectrum . i will assume that volunteers for this are students who are naturally gregarious .

 

Bah, it's a preprint. Not peer-reviewed. So, hogwash?!