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Stress hypertension: the "wrong" genes in the "wrong" environment

G A Harshfield1, C E Grim

  • 1Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, Georgia, USA.

Acta Physiologica Scandinavica. Supplementum
|January 1, 1997
PubMed
Summary

Social stress impacts blood pressure differently based on genetically influenced behaviors. Some animals exhibit aggressive responses, while others show signs of depression, affecting cardiovascular health.

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Area of Science:

  • Behavioral neuroscience
  • Cardiovascular physiology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Jim Henry's research established that social environment can induce hypertension in animals.
  • Genetically determined behavioral traits, such as aggression and passivity, influence cardiovascular responses to stress.
  • Isogenic mouse strains displayed varied behaviors and physiological responses when territorial space was reduced.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the relationship between genetic predisposition, social stress, and cardiovascular responses.
  • To investigate the physiological mechanisms underlying stress-induced hypertension in different behavioral phenotypes.
  • To examine the relevance of the Henry paradigm to human hypertension, particularly in African Americans.

Main Methods:

  • Observation of behavioral and physiological responses in genetically distinct mouse strains under social stress.
  • Induction of hypertension in rats by combining genetic aggression with controlled societal stress.
  • Analysis of adrenal medullary and pituitary-adrenal axis activation, renin levels, and corticosterone in different social groups.

Main Results:

  • Aggressive mice exhibited activated adrenal medullary systems and high renin levels.
  • Depressed mice showed signs of pituitary-adrenal axis activation, low renin, and high corticosterone.
  • Reliable hypertension induction in rats required both genetic predisposition and titrated societal stress.

Conclusions:

  • Individual responses to stress, including blood pressure elevation, are influenced by a combination of genetic factors and social environment.
  • The Henry paradigm offers a framework for understanding stress-related hypertension in humans, with potential implications for specific populations like African Americans.
  • Genetic influences on sodium retention and sensitivity may interact with social stress to exacerbate hypertension in certain ethnic groups.

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