![]() ![]() Stress-related changes in architecture and function of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) in particular have been investigated, as it is involved in the regulation of the stress response, but also reacts sensitively to high stress exposure ( McEwen and Gianaros, 2010). Studies have also shown that the brain is affected eminently by acute stress. As a recent systematic review revealed, higher levels of stress reactivity are associated with negative long-term effects on health, and in particular with increased risk of cardiovascular disease and immune system dysfunction ( Turner et al., 2020). While there is a healthy midrange of stress reactivity that is considered adaptive and useful for coping with certain stressors ( Boyce and Ellis, 2005), high stress reactivity can be problematic, as it contributes to allostatic load ( McEwen, 1998) and is associated with health concerns. The physiological response to acute stress is characterized by the activation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which results in the release of cortisol by the adrenal cortex, and the autonomic nervous system (ANS), which increases the activity of its sympathetic division under stress and initiates a number of processes such as increased release of adrenaline and increase in heart rate ( Pruessner et al., 2010). However, our data do not support the notion of an effect on interference control and DLPFC activation under stress. Similarly, there was no main effect of stress and no stress × group interaction for DLPFC oxygenation.Ĭonclusion: Our study confirms potentially health-enhancing effects of acute exercise on some of the physiological and psychological stress reactivity indicators. Controlling for these two parameters, repeated measures analyses of covariance targeting changes in Stroop interference scores showed no main effect of stress and no stress × group interaction. Results: All stress parameters indicated increases in response to the stressor ( p < 0.001), with higher alpha-amylase and anxiety reactions in the control compared to the exercise group. Stress reactivity was measured with saliva samples (cortisol, alpha-amylase), heart rate monitoring, and anxiety scores. ![]() The Stroop tasks in both conditions were combined with functional near-infrared spectroscopy to record changes in DLPFC oxygenation in response to the tasks. Subsequently, all participants underwent a modified Trier Social Stress Test, which included a Stroop task under enhanced stress. Methods: Sixty male high school students aged 16–20 years performed a Stroop task (baseline condition) and were randomly assigned to an exercise group (30 min on ergometer at 70% of maximum heart rate) and a control group (30 min of reading). The aim of this study was to investigate whether an acute bout of aerobic exercise improves the inhibitory aspect of executive function and the associated dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) oxygenation when under stress. Department of Sport, Exercise and Health, Sport Science Section, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerlandīackground: High psychosocial stress can impair executive function in adolescents, whereas acute exercise has been reported to benefit this cognitive domain.Manuel Mücke *, Sebastian Ludyga, Flora Colledge, Uwe Pühse and Markus Gerber ![]()
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