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Cited by 126Stress Responses and CortisolHormonal and reproductive studiesEvolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior

Stress-induced increase of testosterone: contributions of social status and sympathetic reactivity

Chichinadze, K., Chichinadze, N.·2008·Physiology & Behavior
DOI 10.1016/j.physbeh.2008.03.020
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Abstract

The vast number of studies in both human and animals confirm the inhibiting role of different stressors in the hormonal function of the testicles, decreasing the testosterone (T) level in the blood. However, there also are data suggesting that stress does not invariably inhibit the activity of the testicles. Moreover, the T level in blood may be increased at initial stages of acute stress. Some researchers believe that the last phenomenon is prevalent in organisms that have (i) greater experience in winning in agonistic competitions and/or (ii) dominant status in a population hierarchy. Taking these data into consideration, we ask: what causes different patterns of hormone shifts in dominant and subordinate animals and humans? Does the concentration of luteinizing hormone (LH) determine the blood level of T? Considering that increase of T level is not invariably combined with increased LH, we suggest that the reason for the temporary increase of T concentration in the blood in the initial phase of stress, especially when the level of LH is relatively stable, is due to the increased sensitivity of testicles to LH. It is known that the sympathetic stimulation increases testicles' sensitivity to the gonadotropic hormones. It is also known that the dominants are characterized with predominantly noradrenergic response to stress. So, it seems clear why dominants respond to stress with increased blood T more frequently than others. However, the sympathetic stimulation during stress does not always induce rise of T in the blood of the dominants. We think that the factors which contribute to the transitory increase of the blood T level in the initial stage of stress are the following: absence of chronic stress; dominant status of an animal; more or less stable social relations in a population; some behavioral characteristics, particularly an ability to manage stress situation and respond adequately to frustration; emotions resulting from a winning in agonistic contest; and and noradrenergic type of stress reactivity.

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  • A possible reason for the inconsistency in testosterone response to acute stress may be the social nature of the stressful event.

    “a possible reason for this inconsistency may be the social nature of the stressful event (chichinadze & chichinadze, 2008; tang et al., 2022).”

    From Salivary testosterone and cortisol response in acute stress modulated by seven sessions of mindfulness meditation in young males (2024) · cites this paper as chichinadze & chichinadze, 2008

  • Testosterone modulates HPA axis reactivity to psychosocial stress in men.

    “For instance, testosterone modulates hPa axis men's reactivity to psychosocial stress (chichinadze & chichinadze, 2008;Knight et al., 2017;tang, tang, & Gross, 2019)”

    From Salivary testosterone and cortisol response in acute stress modulated by seven sessions of mindfulness meditation in young males (2024) · cites this paper as chichinadze & chichinadze, 2008

  • The effects of acute stress on fertility are variable; males and females respond differently, and whether acute stress suppresses or enhances fertility depends on individual characteristics such as dominance status.

    “The effects of acute response to challenge, however, are much more variable; males and females do not respond in the same way, and whether acute stress suppresses or enhances fertility depends on individual characteristics such as dominance status (e.g., Chichinadze and Chichinadze, 2008; Korte et al., 2005; Tilbrook et al., 2000)”

    From The Adaptive Calibration Model of stress responsivity (2011) · cites this paper as Chichinadze and Chichinadze, 2008

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Authors
Chichinadze, K., & Chichinadze, N.
Affiliations
Georgian National Academy of Sciences (GE)
Venue
Physiology & Behavior
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-07
Volume
94
Issue
4
Pages
595-603
ISSN
0031-9384 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.physbeh.2008.03.020
OpenAlex
W2050960267
Cited by
126
References
223
Citations by year
2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 11 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 13 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 11
FWCI
0.50
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Physiology & Behavior (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism › Hormonal and reproductive studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
Keywords
testosterone, acute stress, social dominance, social status, sympathetic nervous system, luteinizing hormone, gonadotropin sensitivity, dominance hierarchy, stress coping
MeSH terms
Adaptation, Physiological, Animals, Dominance-Subordination, Hierarchy, Social, Humans, Luteinizing Hormone, Male, Stress, Psychological, Testis, Testosterone

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