Psychological Stress and Mitochondria: A Systematic Review.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Systematic review synthesizing preclinical animal experiments and observational human biomarker studies
PubMed 29389736 · doi:10.1097/PSY.0000000000000545
What was done
A systematic review was conducted examining experimentally controlled studies to evaluate the causal effects of acute and chronic psychological stress on mitochondrial structure and function.
What was found
Twenty-three experimental studies met inclusion criteria, all conducted in male laboratory animals. Nineteen studies reported significant adverse effects of stress on mitochondria (predominantly in the brain), and four showed increases in function or size. In humans, only six non-experimental observational studies were identified, most relying on indirect markers such as mitochondrial DNA copy number. No pooled effect sizes or specific numerical values were reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
This review synthesizes evidence demonstrating that psychological stress induces structural and functional mitochondrial recalibrations, proposing the concept of mitochondrial allostatic load to link psychosocial experiences with cellular bioenergetics.
Limits
Causal experimental evidence is entirely limited to male animal models, leaving sex differences unaddressed. Human evidence consists solely of a small number of observational studies using indirect biomarkers rather than direct functional measures.
Cited by
- supports Chronic stress and social defeat in animal models alter mitochondrial function in the brain.