Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the foremost cause of mortality in the United States, and accounts for over $500 billion per year in economic burden. Chronic stress ranks as one of the leading biobehavioral risk factors for CVD, a relationship that is partially attributable to inflammatory processes elevated during stress. An exciting arena of scientific advancements is focusing on identifying the specific pathways through which chronic stress influences inflammatory activity with emerging evidence to suggest that sleep, which is commonly disrupted during periods of stress, may serve as one key mechanism linking stress and elevated levels of inflammation. It is critical to advance understanding of the interplay between stress and sleep in predicting levels of inflammatory activity because sleep represents a modifiable health behavior. That is, sleep can be targeted for intervention in ways that may ameliorate the deleterious effects of stress on levels of inflammation, and ultimately, CVD risk. This K08 Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award seeks to build on my prior training and research to investigate the role of sleep as a pathway linking chronic stress and markers of inflammatory activity relevant to CVD risk. First, this award will provide the opportunity to deepen my understanding of sleep physiology, measurement, and research methodologies, as well as obtain advanced training in longitudinal statistical methods, women's health, and gene expression/immunobiology. Second, as part of an ongoing longitudinal study, I will examine the prospective associations between sleep, measured objectively using actigraphy, and measures of inflammation, including circulating inflammatory mediators (IL-6, TNF-alpha, and CRP) and monocyte expression of targeted inflammatory genes (IL6, TNF, IL1B) in chronically stressed and low stress maternal caregivers followed over 18-months to test whether sleep mediates the stress-inflammation link. This comprehensive training plan and innovative research study will help to elucidate the interdependent relationships between stress and sleep in predicting inflammatory processes key to cardiovascular health. Moreover, findings from this research will lay the foundation for the development and application of novel therapeutic strategies targeting sleep behavior to reduce levels of inflammation among individuals at elevated risk for CVD, particularly those experiencing high levels of stress.

Public Health Relevance

The proposed study will be the first to prospectively evaluate sleep as a novel pathway through which chronic psychological stress promotes inflammation, a key mechanism in the development of cardiovascular disease. Because sleep represents a modifiable health behavior, this study holds promise for the development and application of effective, targeted sleep interventions to reduce inflammation, and ultimately cardiovascular disease risk in high stress populations. An in-depth understanding of how sleep disturbance influences cardiovascular risk, particularly among those experiencing chronic stress, is critical t our prevention and treatment of this costly disease.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Clinical Investigator Award (CIA) (K08)
Project #
4K08HL112961-05
Application #
9117615
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZHL1)
Program Officer
Brown, Marishka
Project Start
2012-09-01
Project End
2017-06-30
Budget Start
2016-07-01
Budget End
2017-06-30
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2016
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of California San Francisco
Department
Psychiatry
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
094878337
City
San Francisco
State
CA
Country
United States
Zip Code
94118
Felder, Jennifer N; Epel, Elissa S; Coccia, Michael et al. (2018) Effects of daily maladaptive coping on nightly sleep in mothers. Psychol Health 33:144-157
Prather, Aric A; Epel, Elissa S; Portela Parra, Eduardo et al. (2018) Associations between chronic caregiving stress and T cell markers implicated in immunosenescence. Brain Behav Immun 73:546-549
Bostock, Sophie; Crosswell, Alexandra D; Prather, Aric A et al. (2018) Mindfulness on-the-go: Effects of a mindfulness meditation app on work stress and well-being. J Occup Health Psychol :
Swartz, Johnna R; Prather, Aric A; Hariri, Ahmad R (2017) Threat-related amygdala activity is associated with peripheral CRP concentrations in men but not women. Psychoneuroendocrinology 78:93-96
Swartz, Johnna R; Prather, Aric A; Di Iorio, Christina R et al. (2017) A Functional Interleukin-18 Haplotype Predicts Depression and Anxiety through Increased Threat-Related Amygdala Reactivity in Women but Not Men. Neuropsychopharmacology 42:419-426
Cabeza de Baca, Tomás; Epel, Elissa S; Robles, Theodore F et al. (2017) Sexual intimacy in couples is associated with longer telomere length. Psychoneuroendocrinology 81:46-51
Prather, Aric A; Gottlieb, Laura M; Giuse, Nunzia B et al. (2017) National Academy of Medicine Social and Behavioral Measures: Associations With Self-Reported Health. Am J Prev Med 53:449-456
Prather, Aric A; Janicki-Deverts, Denise; Adler, Nancy E et al. (2017) Sleep Habits and Susceptibility to Upper Respiratory Illness: the Moderating Role of Subjective Socioeconomic Status. Ann Behav Med 51:137-146
Gordon, Amie M; Mendes, Wendy Berry; Prather, Aric A (2017) The social side of sleep: Elucidating the links between sleep and social processes. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 26:470-475
Prather, Aric A; Leung, Cindy W; Adler, Nancy E et al. (2016) Short and sweet: Associations between self-reported sleep duration and sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among adults in the United States. Sleep Health 2:272-276

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