Psychoneuroendocrinology最新文献

{"title":"Menstrual cycle estradiol fluctuations predict changes in affect and socioemotional functioning","authors":"Bethany Sander,&nbsp;Duncan Preston,&nbsp;Jennifer L. Gordon","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107789","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107789","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Previous research suggests that estradiol (E2) impacts mood as well as socioemotional and stress-related functioning in menstruating individuals. However, research in this area is limited by a preponderance of cross-sectional studies comparing psychological outcomes across menstrual phases that do not allow for conclusions to be made about E2’s effects independent from progesterone.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In the current longitudinal investigation of 23 naturally cycling women, the potential effects of E2 on affect, state self-esteem, irritability, emotion recognition accuracy, and reactivity to both social exclusion (Cyberball) and psychosocial stress (Trier Social Stress Test; TSST) were assessed by comparing outcomes across two times of the menstrual cycle. Specifically, participants completed sessions in the early follicular (EF; cycle days 2–4, when E2 is expected to be low) and late follicular (LF; within the 6 days prior to ovulation, when E2 is expected to be high) phases.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Negative affect and irritability were significantly higher in the EF phase, whereas positive affect and state self-esteem were significantly higher in the LF phase. Only recognition accuracy for anger was higher in the EF phase, and this effect did not survive corrections for multiple comparisons. While phase did not impact emotional reactivity to Cyberball or the TSST, rumination in response to Cyberball was significantly increased in the EF compared to LF phase. Main analyses for cortisol and heart rate were not significant; however, exploratory analyses revealed a heightened response for cortisol during stress recovery and a larger increase in heart rate in anticipation of the TSST in the EF phase.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>A beneficial effect of the high-E2 LF phase was found for general affective variables. Performance on tasks of socioemotional and stress-related functioning suggest that low or declining levels of E2 may enhance sensitivity to perceiving anger in others, ruminating in response to perceived rejection, and physiological activation in anticipation and recovery of psychosocial stress.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107789"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146214110","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Moment-to-moment bidirectional associations between human milk glucocorticoids and infant behavior","authors":"Nina Bruinhof ,&nbsp;Roseriet Beijers ,&nbsp;Carolina de Weerth","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107790","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107790","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Human milk composition varies between and within mothers and is impacted by both maternal and infant factors. Glucocorticoids in milk may potentially influence infant development. For example, elevated cortisol concentrations in milk have been associated with more infant negative affect. However, evidence supporting the role of human milk glucocorticoids on infant behavior is inconsistent. The current preregistered study investigated bidirectional associations between diurnal milk glucocorticoids and infant crying and sleep. We hypothesized that 1) higher cortisol and cortisone concentrations would be related to more infant crying and less infant sleep, and 2) more infant crying and less infant sleep would be related to higher cortisol and cortisone concentrations.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>At 6 weeks postpartum, healthy mothers (N = 109) collected three milk samples: in the morning, afternoon, and evening. During this same day, mothers kept a logbook on infant crying and sleep. We calculated the duration of crying and sleeping over three time intervals: 1) the complete interval between each milk sample, 2) the 1.5 h after each breast milk sample, and 3) the 1.5 h before each milk sample. Next, we performed multilevel models to assess the bidirectional associations between cortisol and cortisone milk concentrations and infant crying and sleep.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Against our hypotheses, we found that higher cortisol and cortisone milk concentrations were related to more infant sleep 1.5 h after a milk sample. Moreover, more infant sleep 1.5 h before a milk sample was related to higher cortisol and cortisone milk concentrations. No associations were found between milk glucocorticoids and infant crying.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>This study is the first to assess moment-to-moment associations between milk glucocorticoids and infant behavior and broadens our understanding of the role of human milk composition on infant behavior and vice versa.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107790"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146776572","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Investigating a biopsychosocial model of depression in autistic youth: The intersection of cortisol and depressive symptoms","authors":"Blythe A. Corbett ,&nbsp;Trey McGonigle ,&nbsp;Nneka Ijeli ,&nbsp;Simon Vandekar ,&nbsp;Rachael A. Muscatello ,&nbsp;Sloane Sparks","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107811","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107811","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Depression is a leading mental health concern in adolescents. The maturation of the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis during adolescence coincides with higher basal cortisol, and elevations in evening cortisol have been associated with depressive symptoms. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is differentiated by challenges with socioemotional reciprocity. Research in autistic youth has shown earlier and higher rates of depressive symptoms and elevated evening cortisol. The extent to which cortisol profiles may be linked to depressive symptoms in ASD has not been explored.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Participants included 244 youth, 140 autistic and 104 neurotypical, aged 10–16 over four years. The Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) 2nd Edition Total T-score assessed depressive symptoms. Salivary morning and evening cortisol collected over three days in the home were log transformed and averaged. We fit a mixed effects model for CDI Total scores with log-transformed cortisol (fit with natural cubic splines) as the main variable of interest, adjusting for diagnosis (ASD or TD), nonlinear age (fit with natural cubic splines), sex, and use of psychotropic medication. We also allowed for diagnosis-by-cortisol and sex-by-cortisol interactions.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>There was a main effect of morning cortisol on the CDI total score (p = 0.028, robust effect size index (RESI) = 0.17), but no main effect for evening cortisol (p = 0.421, RESI=0.00). There was a diagnosis-by-evening cortisol interaction (p = 0.001, RESI = 0.25), but no diagnosis-by-morning cortisol interaction; the ASD CDI scores were flat across evening cortisol values (p = 0.824), however increasing evening cortisol in the interval 0.11–0.80 nmol/L was associated with increasing CDI in the TD group (p = 0.005). We observed a significant morning cortisol by age interaction (p = 0.029, RESI = 0.18).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Results replicate previous findings in autism showing higher depressive symptoms, but do not show a clear association with cortisol levels. Elevations in evening cortisol were associated with higher depressive symptoms in neurotypical youth; a link previously found in non-autistic adolescents and adults.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107811"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147318179","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Multimodal brain–gut–sleep phenotypes predict delirium, long-term cognitive decline, and survival after colorectal cancer surgery","authors":"Shengjie Pan ,&nbsp;Gang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107794","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107794","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Neuroimmune, circadian, autonomic, and gut–brain processes jointly shape vulnerability to postoperative delirium and long-term cognitive decline, yet their integrated contribution remains unclear.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>In this prospective cohort (n = 300), preoperative assessments included circadian actigraphy, gut microbial diversity and short-chain fatty acids, inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, CRP), nocturnal heart rate variability, sleep–wake characteristics, and psychological symptoms. Unsupervised clustering identified multimodal phenotypes. Outcomes included postoperative delirium, 36-month cognitive, fatigue, and sleep trajectories, and 3-year survival. Analyses used mixed-effects models, Cox regression, and gradient boosting.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Four biobehaviorally coherent phenotypes emerged. Delirium incidence increased from 4.7 % in Phenotype A to 21.6 % in Phenotype D. Cognitive decline over 36 months followed the same gradient, with Phenotypes C–D showing progressive deterioration. Fatigue and sleep recovery displayed parallel phenotype-dependent stratification. Three-year disease-free survival ranged from 86.7 % (A) to 69.3 % (D), and overall survival from 91.2 % to 78.8 %. Relative to the resilient reference phenotype (A), phenotypes characterized by convergent multidomain dysregulation were independently associated with worse survival (HR 2.11 for DFS; HR 1.96 for OS). Machine-learning models ranked circadian amplitude, microbial diversity, SCFA concentrations, IL-6, and nocturnal heart rate variability as dominant contributors.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Multimodal brain–gut–sleep phenotypes strongly predict delirium, long-term cognition, and survival after colorectal cancer surgery. These findings support a systems-based model in which perioperative resilience reflects coordinated regulation of circadian, microbial, autonomic, inflammatory, and psychological pathways.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107794"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Family member bereavement, salivary telomere length, and all-cause mortality in older adults: Findings from the Health and Retirement Study","authors":"Michelle Chang,&nbsp;Patrick A. Wilson,&nbsp;Theodore F. Robles","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107792","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107792","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The biological aging mechanisms by which loss exposure relates to mortality are not well-understood, particularly among communities of color. In this pre-registered, longitudinal study, we evaluated whether salivary telomeres mediate associations between loss burden—premature and cumulative exposure to family member deaths over the lifetime—and mortality. Leveraging a prospective sample of 4837 U.S. older adults from the Health and Retirement Study who recorded at least one kin death, we tested whether participants’ loss burden related to their salivary telomeres 2 years later (linear regression models) and, in turn, predicted all-cause mortality 14 years later (Cox regression models). Models adjusted for covariates including family size, socioeconomic status, and baseline health including smoking. Telomeres did not mediate relationships between loss burden and mortality. Higher loss burden and shorter telomeres each predicted higher odds of mortality. Unexpectedly in race-stratified models, more childhood loss related to longer telomeres among Hispanic participants, and younger kin deaths related to longer telomeres among Black participants. Findings highlight the limitations of salivary telomeres in explaining racial health disparities and the need to identify biological aging mechanisms after loss among communities of color.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107792"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146172902","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Religiosity, spiritual practices, and epigenetic aging: Insights from a population-based sample of middle-aged US adults","authors":"Jason J. Ashe ,&nbsp;Jemar R. Bather ,&nbsp;Alisha A. Crump ,&nbsp;Mario Sims ,&nbsp;Karyn E. Faber ,&nbsp;David R. Williams ,&nbsp;Adolfo G. Cuevas","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107795","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107795","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objectives</h3><div>Religiosity and spirituality (R/S) are considered protective factors linked to extended longevity and optimal physiological health, but how these influences manifest remains unclear. Growing evidence suggests that the impact of R/S may be observable at the cellular level. This study aimed to investigate whether multiple dimensions of R/S were significantly associated with slower biological aging processes through changes in DNA methylation patterns.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Participant data were taken from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Study (<em>N</em> = 1310). R/S measures included spirituality, religious centrality, religious/spiritual coping, private religious practices, and daily spiritual experiences. Two epigenetic clocks (DNA methylation-based indicators) – GrimAge2 and DunedinPACE – were assessed as separate outcome variables using multivariable linear regression analyses. Models controlled for race/ethnicity, sex, age, marital status, education, household income, smoking status, alcohol consumption, and body mass index (BMI).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>In models adjusted for demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, all dimensions of R/S were significantly associated with slower epigenetic age acceleration as measured by GrimAge2, and greater spirituality, religious/spiritual coping, and daily spiritual experiences were similarly associated with a slower pace of aging vis-à-vis DunedinPACE. However, after accounting for smoking status, alcohol consumption, and BMI, only the association between religious/spiritual coping and DunedinPACE remained statistically significant.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Several dimensions of R/S appeared to offer biomolecular advantages linked with aging processes. Future research should seek to investigate additional measures of R/S and explore how these psychosocial resources directly influence cellular-level biological mechanisms.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107795"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146228651","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Washout and photostability of hair endocannabinoids and N-acylethanolamines: Segmental stability, head-covering effects, and in vitro sunlight exposure","authors":"Yutong Zhang ,&nbsp;Ziqiao Luo ,&nbsp;Clemens Kirschbaum ,&nbsp;Wei Gao","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107781","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107781","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Hair analysis has increasingly emerged as an innovative method capable of effectively tracking the cumulative secretion of endogenous cannabinoids (ECs) and N-acylethanolamines (NAEs) over retrospective periods. However, a potentially influential covariate that remains underexamined is hair-shaft exposure to natural sunlight. The present study comprises three experimental investigations to systematically examine the photostability of ECs and NAEs in hair exposed to natural sunlight. Experiment 1 assessed segmental profiles in 6-cm strands cut into six 1-cm segments, testing stability across segments in a repeated-measures design. Experiment 2 examined head-covering and segment effects on 18-cm strands (six 3-cm segments) from individuals who wore a hijab daily vs. those who did not. Experiment 3 exposed matched hair samples in vitro to natural sunlight 0, 1, or 6 h/day for one month. The study shows that the washout effect along the hair shaft with 1-cm segment was observed for hair AEA but no significant pairwise differences after correction, while other analyte concentrations showed no overall segmental change. In the head-covering study, segmental effects were significant for most hair analytes, except for hair AEA in the non-hijab group. No significant interaction effect between head-covering and segmental profile was observed for any hair analytes between groups except for hair SEA. Sunlight exposure produced a robust, dose-responsive reduction in hair AEA, while the patterns for 1-AG/2-AG and NAEs were smaller or inconsistent across exposure levels. Natural sunlight is a consequential covariate for hair-based EC/NAE biomarkers, most notably reducing AEA under natural sunlight exposure. Segmental proximal to distal gradients and head-covering practices can modulate levels. These findings provide an important experimental and methodological foundation for the application of ECs and NAEs in hair as reliable biomarkers, strengthening future research on long-term physiological monitoring in psychoneuroendocrinology.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107781"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146228691","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Linking early adversity to trait level cortisol: The role of cultural resilience in latino adolescents","authors":"Michaela S. Gusman ,&nbsp;Karen Aguilar ,&nbsp;Kevin J. Grimm ,&nbsp;José M. Causadias ,&nbsp;Leah D. Doane","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107808","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107808","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Latent trait cortisol (LTC) has been established across multiple samples as a stable person-level indicator of hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis functioning. However, extant research among predominantly non-Hispanic White samples linking early life adversity to LTC has produced inconsistent findings, likely due to methodological and demographic differences. Using a cultural neurobiological framework, we examined whether cultural resilience factors (ethnic racial identity [ERI], bicultural competence [BC]) may promote healthier LTC levels and protect against the deleterious effects of exposure to early adversity among Latino adolescents. Salivary cortisol was collected five times a day across three weekdays in a sample of 197 Latino high school seniors (<em>M</em>_<em>age</em>=18.1; 64.4 % female). Self-reported questionnaires assessing demographics, health behaviors, adverse experiences, ERI, and BC (i.e., comfort and facility subscales) were also collected. Confirmatory factor analysis modeled LTC using waking and 30-minute post-waking samples. Structural equation modeling revealed that greater early adversity predicted lower LTC (<em>b</em> = −.21, SE =.08, p = .04). We found no promotive nor protective effects of ERI. Bicultural facility predicted greater LTC (<em>b</em> =.25, SE =.08, p = .02) but did not moderate the association between adversity and LTC. Consistent with hypo-arousal theories, early adversity was associated with reduced trait-like physiological stress regulation (LTC) among Latino adolescents, whereas the ease with which youth navigate host and heritage culture demands was linked with higher LTC levels (i.e., better physiological stress regulation). Burgeoning literature establishing LTC as a trait-level cortisol construct should continue to be contextualized by known risk factors as well as culturally salient processes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107808"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147309520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A randomized trial of prenatal cognitive behavioral stress management effects on obstetric health outcomes and infant cortisol levels","authors":"Guido G. Urizar Jr. ,&nbsp;Ilona S. Yim ,&nbsp;Ruby Barragan ,&nbsp;Jacob Nguyen ,&nbsp;Gwendolyn Manning ,&nbsp;Angela Dixon-Hamlett","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107807","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107807","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Altered cortisol patterns during pregnancy have been linked to heightened risk for obstetric health complications (e.g., low infant birthweight) and dysregulated infant cortisol levels after birth, particularly in chronically stressed, low-income and ethnic minority families. Considering the detrimental effects that dysregulated cortisol may have on maternal and infant health, prenatal interventions aimed at cortisol regulation in at-risk families are needed. In a previous study, we reported that low-income, ethnic minority pregnant women randomized to a prenatal cognitive behavioral stress management (CBSM) intervention showed improved pre- and postnatal stress and salivary cortisol patterns relative to a control group. The current study extends this work by investigating whether families who received this prenatal CBSM intervention, relative to a control group, experienced fewer obstetric health complications and more regulated infant post partum cortisol patterns, and if maternal cortisol patterns and psychosocial factors (stressful life events, resilience) influenced CBSM intervention effects.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>One hundred pregnant women (76 % annual income &lt; $20 K, &lt;17 weeks of gestation) were randomized to an eight-week CBSM group intervention (<em>n</em> = 55) or a control group (<em>n</em> = 45). Salivary cortisol was collected at baseline (1st trimester), after the intervention (3rd trimester), and at three months post partum (mothers and infants). Obstetric health complications were assessed via a medical record review.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Prenatal CBSM (compared to the control group) showed fewer obstetric health complications for mothers with elevated prenatal cortisol levels. Further, CBSM (compared to the control group) showed more regulated cortisol patterns (i.e., reducing total cortisol, steeper decline in diurnal cortisol) for infants of mothers who had high cortisol and stress levels, and for infants of African American mothers.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>These results lend support to the effectiveness of prenatal CBSM in enhancing the health of low-income, ethnic minority mothers and their infants, and emphasize the need to investigate the prolonged impact of CBSM in community-based settings.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107807"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147309533","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The role of sex hormones in severe mental illness: A genetic exploration","authors":"R.R. Veeneman ,&nbsp;K.J.H. Verweij ,&nbsp;I.E.C. Sommer ,&nbsp;J.L. Treur ,&nbsp;J.M. Vermeulen","doi":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107810","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.psyneuen.2026.107810","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Prominent sex differences exist in severe mental illness (SMI), with increasing evidence pointing towards a pivotal role for sex hormones. Elucidation of these hormonal influences is crucial to tailor sex-specific prevention and treatment.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>To investigate potential shared genetics and bi-directional causal effects between sex hormone traits and SMI (depressive disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia-spectrum disorder), we computed genetic correlations using linkage disequilibrium score regression and bi-directional summary-level Mendelian Randomization (MR). A range of sensitivity methods was applied and potential mediators were investigated using multivariable MR. Sex-stratified data from genome-wide association studies were used, if available further stratified on menopausal status. We also incorporated other sex hormone traits (progesterone, sex hormone-binding globulin, prolactin, age of menarche, age of menopause) in exploratory analyses.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>We found a widespread pattern of statistically significant, modest genetic correlations between oestrogen/testosterone levels and depressive disorder/schizophrenia-spectrum disorder, in both positive and negative directions and in both sexes (ranging between −0.22 and 0.13). With MR, evidence for causal effects was largely lacking; apart from weak evidence for a causal, increasing effect of testosterone levels on schizophrenia-spectrum disorder risk in males, which was mediated by CRP. Conversely, there was very weak evidence for a causal, increasing effect of liability to schizophrenia-spectrum disorder on testosterone levels in both sexes.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>This study offers new insights into the complex aetiology of SMI by comprehensively mapping genetic associations with sex hormone traits, emphasizing the need to further investigate sex hormones’ impact on SMI using larger and more precisely phenotyped samples to identify individuals particularly vulnerable to hormonal disturbances.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":20836,"journal":{"name":"Psychoneuroendocrinology","volume":"187 ","pages":"Article 107810"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147322109","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}