What is the role of stress and stress-related hormones in emotion regulation?

Filamentous Actinobacteria, such as Streptomyces, produce a plethora of chemically diverse bioactive metabolites that have found applications across medicine, agriculture and biotechnology.

Stress and overwork are massive problems today, but relatively little is known about stress factors in the past. With a look at the deep history of stress, Sarah Schrader hopes to get a better understanding of the human stress experience. Her project application received an NWO XS grant.

The precise psychobiological mechanisms leading to chronic physiological stress responses have not been sufficiently explained, although stress is a major risk factor for disease and early death. A problem for conventional stress theory is that most of these responses seem to occur in situations without…

The soil ecosystem consists of the largest reservoir of biodiversity on Earth.

Plants are colonized by an astounding number of microorganisms that can provide different life-support functions, including nutrient acquisition and protection against (a)biotic stresses like drought or pathogen attack.

Growth hormone profiles are pulsatile and highly variable between individuals, limiting the implementation of mathemathical models to quantify an individual's secretion.

The major aim is to determine the psychophysiological responses to stress and stress-management interventions and to examine the role of stress and stress-related psychophysiological mechanisms (e.g., cognitions, behaviors, and physiological stress responses) in both healthy and medical populations.

Our mission is to recognise and treat stress and anxiety in children as early as possible, by connecting scientific research, clinical practice and education.

The power of personalized nutrition lies in being able to conduct clinical research on healthy people while capturing metabolic markers sensitive to the impact of environmental and metabolic stressors (e.g. diet, changing sex hormones and the menstrual cycle).

Does a universal psychoeducational course about stress in adolescents: I) lead to an increase in knowledge of stress?, II) affect the frequency with which stressors are experienced and the overall stress level?, III) create interest in a tier 2 level follow-up training?, and IV) appeal to students in…

Combined hormonal contraceptives (CHC) are associated with an increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). In 2013, a review was published by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). In this review, the authors concluded that the risk of VTE varies by the type of progesterone in the CHC. Subsequently,…

Being a student can be stressful. Study pressure, living on your own, moving country, financial stress: things can be difficult. Unexpected difficulties may lead to study delay.

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is one of the main reasons for drug attrition during pre-clinical and clinical phases of drug development as well as for drug withdrawal post-marketing.

With this thesis the PhD-candidate aims to enrich the body of evidence concerning the relation between stress and health, and the mediating role of (un)conscious perseverative cognitions, which is captured in the extended perseverative cognition hypothesis.

What is the effectiveness of two school-based skills-training programs in promoting mental health?

Can epigenetic changes explain associations between early life stress and health outcomes?

Although exposure therapy is the gold-standard treatment of posttraumatic stress-disorder (PTSD), only half of the patients adequately benefit from it. Based on recent insights into the mechanisms of extinction, this project examines strategies and techniques to improve exposure treatment outcome in…

How can we facilitate the early recognition of stress and anxiety in the classroom and collaborate with schools in providing low-threshold interventions?

The research question is that unconscious perseverative cognition (UPC) is responsible for a considerable part of cardiovascular (CV) activity that occurs even in the absence of threats and other stressors that one may encounter in one’s daily life.

Our mission is to advance the understanding of mental health of individuals with a history of stress and/or trauma through rigorous interdisciplinary research, integrating insights from clinical psychology, neurobiology, and social sciences. We are committed to translating our findings into innovative…

Acute stress seems to have a surprisingly positive effect on our health. Researcher Erin Faught received an NWO veni grant to find out why that is and how we can use that knowledge to our advantage. For her lab research, she uses a remarkable small animal to learn more about our own stress levels.

Promotor: B. van de Water

Vicencio Oostra, who defended his PhD-thesis at the IBL successfully in June 2013, published new insights into the hormonal regulation of butterfly responses to fluctuating environments.

Promotor: Prof.dr. J. Kuiper

What are the genes and molecular mechanisms involved in bacteria-mediated plant drought tolerance?

What role play stress and fear in forming of nocebo hyperalgesia?

In order to gain a better insight into the basis of the rapid jasmonic acid (JA)-mediated stress response, an integrated approach using a targeted high-resolution mass spectrometry-based (HRMS) platform, was conducted to monitor the metabolism of JA using the model system of cell suspension cultures…

What is the role of neuronal emotional reactivity in the intergenerational transmission of abuse?

The aims of the project are to: further clarify 'inhibition by safety'; explore and describe all possible sagety factors, with a special focus on the primary human safety source: social connectedness; reviewing prolonged stress responses without stressors.

Beneficial plant-associated microbiota, particularly those inhabiting the rhizosphere, contribute substantially to plant health through pathogen suppression, stimulation of plant defence responses, and enhanced nutrient acquisition.

I want to understand the overlap between physical health, mental health, and healthy aging and whether/how stress (behaviorally and biologically) may tie these concepts together.

Clinical psychologist Bernet Elzinga has been appointed as Professor of a personal chair at the Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences. This professorship will contribute both nationally and internationally to the broader promotion of Leiden University in the field of stress and psychopathology.

During post-embryonic development into adults, animals face an environment that fluctuates constantly. For example, in nutrient availability, temperature, and osmolarity (e.g., salt concentration).

Food security is challenged by a growing global population and by climate change. Drought and soil salinity are considered the most important ones that inhibit crop yield and distribution. Worryingly, climate change is predicted to increase not only their frequency and severity, but also their co-occurrence,…

Stress, burnout, depression – these conditions pervade all levels of our society. Children and students suffer from constant pressure to achieve; at the international level, tensions lead to short-sighted actions; and, at the personal level, stress affects our health and social environment. How do our…

What are the behavioral, cognitive, and motivational consequences of decision reversibility?

How do you measure over-protective parenting? Why are girls more likely to develop anxiety disorders? And do the social skills of therapists really make a difference in treatment outcomes?

Why did fewer women suffer from osteoporosis in the past than today? And which aspects of a city make public spaces safe, accessible and comfortable for all residents? These two research questions will be explored in more detail thanks to an Impulse Grant from the Leiden University Fund.

The central question of this Vici proposal is to investigate if, and how actinobacteria exploit life without a cell wall.

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Our vision of stress is starting to change fundamentally. We can suffer stress without even being aware of it, while sleeping as wall as during the day. Professor of Psychology Jos Brosschot will discuss this phenomenon in his inaugural lecture on 2 December.

High throughput microscopy

Chronic stress weakens the immune system, psychologist Jos Brosschot warns in an interview with Leidsch Dagblad newspaper. Social isolation can cause feelings of insecurity and stress. He therefore advises keeping in touch with others.