The present dissertation investigated adolescents’ overall stress and perceived stressors, the effectiveness of a universal psychoeducational program about stress, the Stress Lessons, and... Show moreThe present dissertation investigated adolescents’ overall stress and perceived stressors, the effectiveness of a universal psychoeducational program about stress, the Stress Lessons, and adolescents’ self-referral to a targeted school-based intervention. Another aim was to examine whether adolescents from different demographic groupings vary in their experience of stressors and the effect of psychoeducation. A large and heterogeneous sample was recruited from schools with variation in educational tracks and self-perceived ethnic backgrounds. The sample consisted of 1613 predominantly young adolescents with an average age of 13 years old. Most adolescents have to maneuver through a world of stressors, mostly related to the school environment, their health, and future uncertainty, while adolescents experience less stress from social pressure and financial pressure. Furthermore, our results indicate that the Stress Lessons were effective regarding improving adolescents’ knowledge about stress, but not in terms of stress levels. Finally, we found that adolescents who reported higher levels of test anxiety were generally more likely to show interest in an intervention targeting reduction of performance anxiety after the Stress Lessons. However, we did not find that adolescents with lower levels of social skills were more interested in an intervention targeting improvement of social skills. Show less
From an evolutionary perspective, stress is an adaptive system that is necessary togenerate appropriate responses to stochastic and unpredictable events, and copeaccordingly with the environment.... Show moreFrom an evolutionary perspective, stress is an adaptive system that is necessary togenerate appropriate responses to stochastic and unpredictable events, and copeaccordingly with the environment. The physiological response to stress has beenremarkably conserved in vertebrate evolution. However, the threats to ourinternal “equilibrium” have changed between our ancestral environments and ourcurrent modern societies, and the demands for survival have evolved. Theglucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a timeless component of stress adaptation, as it is atthe intersection between the environmental stressors (i.e., physical, or psychosocial)and the genome. Therefore, the GR represents a valuable therapeutic target instress- and glucocorticoid-related disorders. This thesis provides new insightsinto the molecular mechanisms underlying GR signaling in metabolic diseases andbrain function and highlights the promise and importance of selectivity in novel GRtargeting treatments. Show less
This thesis addresses the pathophysiology of stress related diseases, taking two rare diseases, in which the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and cortisol play a key role, as a model for stress... Show moreThis thesis addresses the pathophysiology of stress related diseases, taking two rare diseases, in which the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and cortisol play a key role, as a model for stress vulnerability of the brain and the eye. The second aim of this thesis is to describe the organization of thromboprophylaxis management, and the outcome evaluation and quality of care for patients treated for Cushing’s syndrome. For more informatie, please refer tot he summary in the pdf of the thesis. Show less
There is a fundamental difference between mammals and fish in how hypoxia affects the lipid metabolism by means of the stress hormone noradrenaline. In mammals, hypoxia induces an increase in lipid... Show moreThere is a fundamental difference between mammals and fish in how hypoxia affects the lipid metabolism by means of the stress hormone noradrenaline. In mammals, hypoxia induces an increase in lipid metabolism, which can eventually lead to tissue damage due to elevated plasma fatty acid levels, e.g. in case of a heart attack. However, hypoxia is not a normally occurring situation in healthy mammals as opposed to many fish species, because water is a relative poor source of oxygen. In hypoxic fish therefore, noradrenaline mediates a decrease in lipid metabolism, and we believe that this is a general protection mechanism in fish against lipid poisoning. There is a clear difference in the mode of breathing between mammals and fish, namely air- vs. water-breathing. Hence, we hypothesise that this difference is the cause for the opposing effects of noradrenaline. Therefore, we studied the effects of hypoxia on an air-breathing fish, the African catfish. However, physiologically this species reacted the same as other water-breathing fish, namely by means of a reduced lipid metabolism. Additionally, we demonstrated that, despite the opposing effects on the lipid metabolism, the transduction pathways in fish and mammals are very alike, and thus only a minor change has occurred in the course of evolution. This research has aided in a better understanding of the evolutionary changes in lipid metabolism.|Er is een fundamenteel verschil tussen zoogdieren en vissen in hoe het vetmetabolisme onder hypoxie (=zuurstoftekort) wordt veranderd door het stresshormoon noradrenaline. In zoogdieren leidt hypoxie tot een verhoogd vetmetabolisme, wat uiteindelijk zelfs weefselschade kan veroorzaken door te hoge vetzuurgehaltes, b.v. bij een hartaanval. Gezonde zoogdieren komen normaliter niet in zuurstofnood, in tegenstelling tot veel vissoorten, omdat water een relatief arme zuurstofbron is. In hypoxische vissen daalt dan ook het vetmetabolisme door noradrenaline, en wij denken dat dit een beschermingsmechanisme is tegen een vetzuurvergiftiging. Er is een duidelijk verschil in de manier van ademhalen van zoogdieren en vissen, respectievelijk lucht- en waterademhaling, en dit verschil ligt mogelijkerwijs ten grondslag aan deze verschillende effecten van noradrenaline; dit is de centrale hypothese van het onderzoek. Daarom is gekeken naar het effect van zuurstoftekort bij een luchtademhalende vissoort, de Afrikaanse meerval. Deze vis bleek echter fysiologisch hetzelfde te reageren als waterademhalende vissen, namelijk een verlaagd vetmetabolisme. Daarnaast is aangetoond dat, ondanks tegenovergestelde effecten op het vetmetabolisme, de aansturingmechanismen in vissen en zoogdieren vergelijkbaar zijn, en dat er dus maar een minimale verandering in de evolutie heeft plaatsgevonden. Dit onderzoek heeft bijgedragen tot een beter begrip van de evolutionaire veranderingen in het vetmetabolisme. Show less
