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Stress-related Behavioural Responses, Immunity and Ageing in Animal Models

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Immunosenescence

Abstract

Health maintenance during the ageing process, which allows for increased longevity, is determined by the preservation of tissue homeostasis at all physiological levels. Healthy ageing depends both on the individual’s genetic make-up and lifestyle factors (Kirkwood, Nature 455:739–740, 2008). The age-related loss of homeostasis and capacity to react appropriately to stress, as a consequence of the deterioration of physiological systems, have been proposed to explain the increase of morbidity and mortality with ageing (De la Fuente, Neuroimmunomodulation 15:213–223, 2008). Although the effects of stressors on behaviour and immunity are very heterogeneous since they depend on type, frequency, duration, intensity, animal models, perception of subject and coping by the stressed animal (Costa-Pinto and Palermo-Nieto, Neuroimmunomodulation 17:196–199, 2010), it has been suggested that immunosenescence is a significant consequence of chronic stress and the actions of stress hormones (Bauer, Neuroimmunomodulation 15:241–250, 2008; Lord et al., Handbook of Immunesenescence, pp 475–498, 2009). Moreover, this age-related impairment of the immune system, in turn, appears to be involved in the increased oxidation and inflammation status that occurs in the ageing process, increasing its rate and representing a vicious cycle of decline (De la Fuente and Miquel, Curr Pharm Des, 15:3003–3026, 2009).

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Dr. Miquel for his critical revision of the article. This work was supported by grants of the MICINN (BFU2011-30336), Research Group of UCM (910379ENEROINN) and RETICEF (RD06/0013/0003) (ISCIII).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, Faculty of Biology, Complutense University of Madrid, 28040, Madrid, Spain

    Carmen Vida & Mónica De la Fuente

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  1. Carmen Vida
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  2. Mónica De la Fuente
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Correspondence to Carmen Vida .

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  1. University of Amsterdam, Oudezijds Achterburgwal 237, Amsterdam, 1012 DL, Netherlands

    Jos A. Bosch

  2. University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, United Kingdom

    Anna C. Phillips

  3. University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, United Kingdom

    Janet M. Lord

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Vida, C., Fuente, M. (2013). Stress-related Behavioural Responses, Immunity and Ageing in Animal Models. In: Bosch, J., Phillips, A., Lord, J. (eds) Immunosenescence. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4776-4_8

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