In a study on violent aggression that included 16 aggressive male prison inmates from Norway, researchers found that immunoglobulin G (IgG) autoantibodies against adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) exhibited differences in ACTH epitope-binding in the inmates compared with nonviolent control participants; when IgG and ACTH from aggressive participants were injected into mice in a behavioral experiment, the time elapsed until a resident mouse attacked an intruder mouse decreased, compared with when IgG and ACTH from control participants were used, findings highlighting potential molecular mechanisms underlying stress response and aggression in humans.
Article #17-20008: "Autoantibodies reactive to adrenocorticotropic hormone can alter cortisol secretion in both aggressive and nonaggressive humans," by Henning Værøy et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Henning Vaeroy, Akershus University Hospital, Nordbyhagen, NORWAY; tel: +47 679 60 000; e-mail: <Henning.Vaeroy@ahus.no>; Serguei Fetissov, University of Rouen Normandy, Mont-Saint-Aignan, FRANCE; tel: +332 35 14 61 93; email: <Serguei.Fetissov@univ-rouen.fr>
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences