Hormonal responses to psychological stress and family history of alcoholism.

The present study was designed to determine whether stress hormones and subjective responses to a psychological stressor were different in nonalcoholic offspring from families with a history of alcohol dependence (family history positive, FHP) than in nonalcoholic offspring without a family history of alcohol dependence (family history negative, FHN). Forty-five healthy subjects (17 FHP, 28 FHN), between the ages of 18 and 29 years, completed the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). The TSST consisted of 5 min of public speaking followed by 5 min of mental arithmetic. Three baseline and five post-TSST blood samples were drawn. Pre- and post-TSST self-report measures of anxiety were obtained. Cortisol, adrenocorticotropin (ACTH), and prolactin significantly increased in response to the TSST in the entire study sample (F(1,187)=70.22, p<0.001, F(1,143)=33, p<0.001, and F(1,134)=14.37, p<0.001, respectively). Cortisol responses were influenced by an interaction between racial composition and family history of alcoholism (F(1,57)=4.50, p=0.038). Among Caucasian subjects, FHP subjects had greater cortisol response to the TSST compared to FHN subjects (F(1,57)=4.45, p=0.039). No family history effect was identified in African-American subjects. Adrenocorticotropin responses did not differ between FHP and FHN subjects. Adrenocorticotropin response was positively associated with baseline ACTH levels in FHN subjects (t=5.02, p=or<0.001), but not in FHP subjects. Prolactin responses did not differ between FHP and FHN subjects. Anxiety response scores (post-TSST scores minus pre-TSST scores) were higher in FHP subjects compared with FHN subjects (z=-2.67, p=0.007). In addition, anxiety response scores were positively associated with cortisol response levels to the TSST in FHN subjects (t=4.52, p<0.001). In contrast, anxiety responses were negatively associated with cortisol responses in FHP subjects (t=-2.30, p=0.024). Our findings are consistent with theories that greater reactivity to stress is associated with greater risks for alcoholism. Furthermore, the findings suggest that the association between the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis hormonal response and the subjective perception of stress might be deranged in offspring of alcoholics.