Effects of long-term voluntary exercise on the mouse hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis.

We studied the effects of long-term (i.e. 4 wk) voluntary exercise on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis in male mice.

Vasopressin mediates the response of the combined dexamethasone/CRH test in hyper-anxious rats: implications for pathogenesis of affective disorders.

To investigate the neuroendocrine alterations linked to inborn emotionality in two Wistar rat lines selectively bred for either high (HAB) or low (LAB) anxiety-related behavior, we administered the combined dexamethasone (DEX)/corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) test. DEX (12:00 M. (noon); 30 microg/kg) resulted in a significantly less efficient suppression of the diurnal increase in the circulating corticotropin (ACTH) levels in the male HAB rats than in the male LAB rats.