Stress, adaptation, and immunity: studies in humans

Area of Science:

• Psychoneuroimmunology
• Immunology
• Stress Physiology

Background:

• Conventional wisdom suggests a link between stress, coping, and illness.
• Limited empirical data historically supported this connection.
• Recent research has focused on the stress-adaptation-immunity relationship.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between stress, adaptation, and human immune function.
• To investigate the immunosuppressive effects of stress on cellular immunity.
• To identify critical factors mediating the stress-immunity relationship.

Main Methods:

• Review of experimental and naturally-occurring stress studies.
• Analysis of alterations in human cellular immune function.
• Examination of mediating mechanisms in the stress-adaptation-immunity nexus.

Main Results:

• Considerable evidence links stress to alterations in cellular immune function.
• Observed changes in immune function due to stress are generally immunosuppressive.
• Mediating mechanisms remain poorly understood.

Conclusions:

• Stress significantly impacts human cellular immune function, often leading to suppression.
• Factors such as stressor characteristics and individual adaptive capacity are critical.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the precise mechanisms involved.