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Patients with atopy exhibit reduced cortisol awakening response but not cortisol concentrations during the rest of the day

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Abstract

It has been documented that cortisol release in response to acute stressors is reduced in patients with atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, and other atopic diseases compared to that in healthy subjects. We aimed to test the hypothesis that atopic patients exert reduced salivary cortisol awakening response (CAR) in comparison with healthy subjects. The hypothesis was tested on a stressful and a relax day selected subjectively. Moreover, we evaluated the impact of trait anxiety. The sample consisted of 60 subjects, out of which 28 were patients with atopy and 32 healthy volunteers of both sexes. Saliva samples were collected in the morning to evaluate CAR as well as in the early afternoon and evening to look at cortisol concentrations during the rest of the day. The results showed reduced CAR in atopic patients compared to that in healthy subjects. This effect was modulated by sex with a significant difference observed in males. While CAR was reduced, atopic patients had unchanged cortisol concentrations throughout the day. The evening cortisol was even higher in atopic patients. If the subjects were stratified according to the trait anxiety, no significant differences in CAR between high and low anxiety were observed. No differences in cortisol variables including CAR were observed between the stressful and relax day. In conclusion, this study presents evidence on reduced CAR suggesting an insufficient HPA axis reactivity in atopy. Furthermore, the data in atopic patients demonstrate that reduced HPA axis reactivity does not necessarily mean lower cortisol concentrations throughout the day. This might be of relevance to immune system function and the course of the disease.

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Notes

  1. \( \mathrm{MnInc}=\left(\frac{S2+S3}{2}-S1\right) \)

  2. \( {\mathrm{CARAUC}}_{\mathrm{G}}=\left(\frac{S2+S1}{2}+\frac{S3+S2}{2}\right) \)

Abbreviations

AUCG :

Area under the curve relative to ground

CAR:

Cortisol awakening response

HPA:

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis

MnInc:

Mean increase

PSS:

Perceived stress scale

STAI-T:

State and trait anxiety inventory-trait version

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Ludmila Zilava for excellent laboratory assistance.

Funding

The study was supported by the grant of Slovak Research and Development Agency under the contract nos. APVV-0496-12 and APVV-17-0451; and projects of VEGA 1/0739/17, 2/0057/15, KEGA 085UK-4/2017, and FG05/2017.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia

    J. Rajcani, P. Solarikova & I. Brezina

  2. Laboratory of Pharmacological Neuroendocrinology, Institute of Experimental Endocrinology, Biomedical Research Center of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia

    K. Buzgoova & D. Jezova

  3. Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius University, Bratislava, Slovakia

    K. Buzgoova

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  1. J. Rajcani
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Correspondence to D. Jezova.

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Rajcani, J., Solarikova, P., Buzgoova, K. et al. Patients with atopy exhibit reduced cortisol awakening response but not cortisol concentrations during the rest of the day. Immunol Res 67, 176–181 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12026-019-09076-w

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