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		Professor Stafford Lightman Neural regulation of Hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal activity, the autonomic nervous system and stress related behaviour. Variation in corticosteroid responsiveness. Full contact details Stafford.Lightman@bristol.ac.uk Laboratories for Integrative Neuroscience and Endocrinology (LINE)

Projects - Diseases - Processes - Techniques - Equipment - Funding - Collaborations - Teaching - Group members - Publications & further information

Research

Stress related disease is an rapidly increasing feature of our society - but the mechanisms through which it causes disease are very poorly understood.

We are studying the neural pathways in the brain that transduce the CNS response to environmental stress and disease, and measure changes in gene transcription in physiologically relevant areas.We also assess how these pathways effect the efferent limb of the stress reponse by looking at neuroendocrine parameters of hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal activity (including the pulsatility of corticosterone secretion), autonomic responses(both sympathetic and parasympathetic activity) and immune parameters.

In addition, we are beginning to develop techniques to assess the effects of stress on atheroma formation, and the pathways that are involved.

Current projects include:

The effects of stress on the pulsatile secretion of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis
The neural pathways involved in the response to inflammatory and psychological stressors (with Dr Chris Lowry)
Mechanisms of specificity of corticsteroid effects in different tissues and the differential responses of splice variants of the glucocorticoid receptor (with Dr Michael Norman)
Assess the mechanisms though which stress can accelerate atheroma formation in Apo(e)-- knockouts (with Dr Chris Jackson)
Studies in cohorts of subjects to assess stress reponsiveness and its correlation with clinical endpoints of disease

Possible future projects and direction of research:

Development of automated sampling systems for use in man, both in a clinical investigation setting and in ambulant people in normal workday routines.
Elucidation of the sites in the CNS and the relevant neurotransmitters involved in generation of infradian rhythms of HPA activity.
Refinement of human studies to assess how HPA responsiveness can be altered by early life events (programming),and the relationship of HPA and autonomic reponsiveness to the development of disease.

Diseases related to this field of research
Stress related disorders, clinical depression, autonomic neuropathy, Cushings, Addisons, hypothalamic and pituitary disease

Processes and functions relevant to this work
Development of stress-related disease including clinical depression, anxiety disorders,cardiovascular disease. Regulation of pulsatility of hormone secretion by the brain and its relevance to signal transduction processes.

Techniques in routine use
Molecular techniques for gene expression, immunocytochemistry, radioimmunoassay, automated blood sampling, behavioural studies, clinical studies

Equipment in routine use
Routine molecular laboratory equipment, computerised automated sampling equipment, Finapress automated blood pressure and heart rate equipment

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