DNA methylation and sex-specific expression of FKBP5 as correlates of one-month bedtime cortisol levels in healthy individuals

Allostatic load is a theoretical construct representing the sum of detrimental consequences of stress accumulated over time (Ogden, 2004). High allostatic load is a major contributor to poor health outcomes. Chronic exposure to the stress hormone cortisol is a significant component of allostatic load, and is associated with cardiovascular and metabolic disorders.(Bose et al., 2009; Brydon et al., 2006; Hackett and Steptoe, 2016; Kelly and Ismail, 2015) The brain is especially susceptible to cortisol, as prolonged exposure is associated with an increase in neuropsychiatric disorders,(Fardet et al., 2012) decrease in hippocampal volume,(Rahman et al., 2016) and cognitive decline.(Arnsten, 2015; McKlveen et al., 2016) Given the detrimental impact of chronic exposure to cortisol, an easily accessible biological measurement capable of capturing long term cortisol exposure would be immensely useful for testing the association of cortisol load and disease susceptibility.
Source: Psychoneuroendocrinology - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Source Type: research