Effects of Acute Stress or Centrally Injected Interleukin-1beta on Neuropeptide Expression in the Immune System

Acute stress stimulates the expression and release of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) from the hypothalamus, and the pro-opiomelanocortin products beta-endorphin and ACTH from the anterior pituitary. These neuropeptides are also expressed in immune tissues, and it has been proposed that they may modulate immune responses to stress through paracrine mechanisms. We subjected rats to restraint stress or central injection of interleukin (IL)-1beta to determine whether these acute stimuli can alter the expression of neuropeptides in the spleen and thymus. Restraint stress significantly increased the contents of all these neuropeptides in thymic, but not splenic, extracts. A single icv injection of IL-1beta increased contents of CRH, AVP, ACTH and beta-endorphin in the spleens of both sham-operated and adrenalectomised (ADX) rats. IL-1beta increased thymic contents of CRH and ACTH in sham-operated rats but these increases were not observed in ADX rats. These results suggest that the effects of IL-1beta on neuropeptide expression in the spleen are independent of glucocorticoids, whereas IL-1beta stimulation of neuropeptide expression in the thymus is dependent on circulating glucocorticoids. There were significant correlations between increases in CRH, ACTH and beta-endorphin in the spleen, and between CRH and ACTH in the thymus, consistent with the suggestion that IL-1beta-induced increases in ACTH and beta-endorphin may be mediated through CRH. These results provide evidence that stressors can directly influence neuropeptide expression in immune tissues. Thus stress may influence immune functions through paracrine mechanisms involving locally synthesised neuropeptides as well as through activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis.     

Soliciting Charity Contributions: The Parlance of Asking for Money1

The major purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of three verbally-mediated variables on financial contributions in a door-todoor charity campaign. The relationship of race to contributions was also observed by using both black and white subjects. One hundred and twenty black and 120 white subjects were randomly assigned to one of 8 verbal appeals in a 2 (High vs. Low Dependency) × 2 (Internal vs. External Causal Locus of Need) × 2 (“it is your social responsibility” vs. “it will make you feel good” Expressed Reason for Giving) factorial design. The solicitor controlled for order effects by varying the sequence of these three variables within each experimental group. Main effects were found for Rae, Causal Locus of Need, and Expressed Reason for Giving: Whites contributed more than blacks, the external locus of need condition produced more giving than the internal condition, and persons who heard the “feel good” reason donated more than those in the “social responsibility” condition. Additionally, a significant Causal Locus of Need × Expressed Reason for Giving interaction was found. The combination of external locus of need and “feel good” was considerably more productive of contributions than the other three combinations. Implications of these results for the helping behavior literature are discussed.     

Patients' and staff's experiences of multidisciplinary follow-up for high-grade glioma after radical radiotherapy

Meeting the complex needs of patients with high-grade glioma requires multidisciplinary input. How best to provide care after initial treatment ends is contentious. This study explored the experiences of patients and staff at one UK centre where regular multidisciplinary clinics and brain scanning is provided. In-depth interviews conducted with 10 patients and six staff were transcribed and analysed qualitatively. Patients reported: supportive, individualised care with familiar staff; good communication; that regular scanning was reassuring. Staff believed that team follow-up facilitated immediate decision-making and referral, and reduced visits. They felt that patients value seeing their scans. Patients and staff described positive and negative experiences of multidisciplinary follow-up. There is need to investigate the impact of different approaches to ongoing care.