The DOI matches its Crossref record; 208 of the 208 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Aging and the HPA axis: Stress and resilience in older adults
Open accessAbstract
Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function may change over the course of aging, and altered diurnal or stress-induced secretion of the hormone cortisol could predispose older adults to negative health outcomes. We propose that psychological resilience may interact with diurnal cortisol to affect health outcomes later in life. Emotion regulation and social support are two constructs that contribute to resilience and exhibit age-specific patterns in older adults. Determining how the use of resilience resources interacts with age-related diurnal cortisol will improve our understanding of the pathways between stress, resilience, and well-being. In this review, we assess published studies evaluating diurnal cortisol in older adults to better understand differences in their HPA axis functioning. Evidence thus far suggests that diurnal cortisol may increase with age, although cross-sectional studies limit the conclusions that can be drawn. We also review extant evidence connecting age-specific signatures of emotion regulation and social support with diurnal cortisol. Conclusions are used to propose a preliminary model demonstrating how resilience resources may modulate the effects of cortisol on health in aging.
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“Moreover, aging and social isolation appear to exacerbate HPA dysregulation, creating a feedforward loop of immune senescence, neuroinflammation, and frailty, especially in neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease [54].”
From Chronic Stress and Autoimmunity: The Role of HPA Axis and Cortisol Dysregulation (2025) · cites this paper as [54]
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“More precisely, healthy older adults exhibit higher mean diurnal levels of stress biomarkers than younger individuals7.”
From Benefits from one session of deep and slow breathing on vagal tone and anxiety in young and older adults (2021) · cites this paper as [7]
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Items 201–208 of 208
Immune responses to stress in rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis
de Brouwer, S. J. M., van Middendorp, H., Stormink, C., Kraaimaat, F., Joosten, I., Radstake, T. R. D. J., de Jong, E. M. G. J., Schalkwijk, J., Donders, A. R. T., Eijsbouts, A. M. M., et al. (2014) · Rheumatology · doi:10.1093/rheumatology/keu221 · Cited by 23
Resilience in Aging: The Real Experts
Resnick, B. M. (2008) · Geriatric Nursing · doi:10.1016/j.gerinurse.2008.01.003 · Cited by 20
Socioemotional Selectivity Theory
Reis, H. T., & Sprecher, S. (2009) · Encyclopedia of Human Relationships · doi:10.4135/9781412958479.n519 · Cited by 20
Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis
Meikle, A. W., & Nelson, D. H. (1984) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-407-00346-0.50044-1 · Cited by 19
Clark, A. J., Strandberg‐Larsen, K., Pedersen, J. M., Lange, P., Prescott, E., & Rod, N. H. (2014) · COPD Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease · doi:10.3109/15412555.2014.922175 · Cited by 14
Psychosocial Stress and Salivary Cortisol in Older People: A Brief Review
Lai, J. C. L. (2014) · Journal of Aging Science · doi:10.4172/2329-8847.1000120 · Cited by 7
Hormones and emotion: stress and beyond
Wirth, M. M., & Gaffey, A. E. (2013) · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Cited by 5
Self-citationAbercrombie, H. C., Speck, N. S., & Monticelli, R. M. (2006) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2006.01.001 · Cited by 3
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Fragala, M. S., Cadore, E. L., Dorgo, S., Izquierdo, M., Kraemer, W. J., Peterson, M. D., & Ryan, E. D. (2019) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003230 · Cited by 1,290
The Biology of Human Resilience: Opportunities for Enhancing Resilience Across the Life Span
Feder, A., Fred-Torres, S., Southwick, S. M., & Charney, D. S. (2019) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.07.012 · Cited by 269
Magnon, V., Dutheil, F., & Vallet, G. T. (2021) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-021-98736-9 · Cited by 149
Chronic Stress and Autoimmunity: The Role of HPA Axis and Cortisol Dysregulation
Nunez, S. G., Rabelo, S. P., Subotic, N., Caruso, J. W., & Knezevic, N. N. (2025) · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · doi:10.3390/ijms26209994 · Cited by 138
“Moreover, aging and social isolation appear to exacerbate HPA dysregulation, creating a feedforward loop of immune senescence, neuroinflammation, and frailty, especially in neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease [54].”
Hakamata, Y., Komi, S., Moriguchi, Y., Izawa, S., Motomura, Y., Sato, E., Mizukami, S., Kim, Y., Hanakawa, T., Inoue, Y., et al. (2017) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-017-08918-7 · Cited by 76
Metadata
- Authors
- Gaffey, A. E., Bergeman, C. S., Clark, L. A., & Wirth, M. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Notre Dame (US)
- Corresponding author
- Gaffey, Allison E.
- Venue
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2016-09
- Volume
- 68
- Pages
- 928-945
- ISSN
- 0149-7634 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5621604
- OpenAlex
- W2463112166
- Cited by
- 273
- References
- 208
- Citations by year
- 2026: 24 · 2025: 37 · 2024: 31 · 2023: 27 · 2022: 28 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 29 · 2019: 26 · 2018: 21 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 2
- FWCI
- 2.11
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- Notre Dame Emotion and Stress Physiology Laboratory
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Resilience and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Aging and Gerontology Research
- Keywords
- hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, aging, diurnal cortisol, psychological resilience, older adults, stress, emotion regulation, social support, cortisol secretion, well-being, age-related changes
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Aging, Circadian Rhythm, Cross-Sectional Studies, Humans, Hydrocortisone, Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System, Pituitary-Adrenal System, Saliva, Stress, Psychological
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