Voluntary wheel running as a promising strategy to promote autonomic resilience to social stress in females: Vagal tone lies at the heart of the matter

Social stress is a major risk factor for comorbid conditions including cardiovascular disease and depression. While women exhibit 2 –3× the risk for these stress-related conditions compared to men, the mechanisms underlying heightened stress susceptibility among females remain largely unknown. Due to a lack in understanding of the pathophysiology underlying stress-induced comorbidities among women, there has been a significan t challenge in developing effective therapeutics. Recently, a causal role for inflammation has been established in the onset and progression of comorbid cardiovascular disease/depression, with women exhibiting increased sensitivity to stress-induced immune signaling.
Source: Autonomic Neuroscience: Basic and Clinical - Category: Neuroscience Authors: Tags: Review Article Source Type: research