Cited by 209Stress Responses and CortisolAdrenal Hormones and DisordersHormonal and reproductive studies

Do glucocorticoid concentrations rise with age in the rat?

Sapolsky, Robert M.·1992·Neurobiology of Aging

Abstract

While the secretion of glucocorticoids by the adrenal gland is essential for survival of various stressors, glucocorticoid excess can be pathogenic. This two-edged quality to glucocorticoid action makes it of interest whether glucocorticoid concentrations change with age. Numerous studies have examined this in the rat but have failed to reach consensus. The present report analyzes this literature and concludes that the lack of consensus cannot be attributed to strain or sex differences or differences in the point in the circadian cycle at which rats were studied. Instead, it appears that a critical variable is how truly "basal" (i.e., unstressed) basal samples were; in studies in which basal glucocorticoid concentrations in young control subjects were in a range reflecting unstressed basal conditions, there is a robust increase in hormone concentrations with age. In contrast, the bulk of studies reporting no increase with age were those in which young subjects had elevated basal glucocorticoid concentrations (perhaps reflecting the method and speed of obtaining the blood sample, the social conditions of the rat housing, and/or the recency with which there was a disturbance in the animal room). Thus, it appears that once this source of variability is recognized and factored out, there is a considerable increase in basal glucocorticoid concentrations in aged rats.

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Crossref · 10.1016/0197-4580(92)90025-s

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  • This age-associated increase in corticosterone was also reported in rats, and was associated with a decline in hippocampal neurogenesis.

    “This age-associated increase in corticosterone was also reported in rats, and was associated with a decline in hippocampal neurogenesis (Cameron and McKay, 1999;Sapolsky, 1992).”

    From Microglia Priming with Aging and Stress (2017) · cites this paper as Sapolsky, 1992

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Authors
Sapolsky, R. M.
Affiliations
Stanford University (US)
Corresponding author
Sapolsky, Robert M.
Venue
Neurobiology of Aging
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
1992-01
Volume
13
Issue
1
Pages
171-174
ISSN
0197-4580 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1992767020
Cited by
209
References
28
Citations by year
2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 7 · 2012: 5
FWCI
5.05
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Neurobiology of Aging (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health (5r01ag006633-08)
  • National Institute on Aging (R01-AG06633)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Adrenal Hormones and Disorders
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Hormonal and reproductive studies
Keywords
glucocorticoids, aging, adrenal cortex, stress response, circadian rhythm, sex differences, strain differences
MeSH terms
Aging, Animals, Female, Glucocorticoids, Male, Rats, Inbred F344, Rats, Inbred Strains, Species Specificity, Rats

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