Postnatal Stress Procedures Induce Long-Term Endocrine and Metabolic Alterations Involving Different Proopiomelanocortin-Derived Peptides

The term stress is still a sort of shadowy anonimity. According to Hans Selye (1976), “Stress is the nonspecific response of the body to any demand”. A stressor is an agent that produces stress at any time. The general adaptation syndrome represents the chronologic development of the response to stressors when their action is prolonged. It consists of three phases: the alarm reaction, the stage of resistance and the stage of exhaustion. The manifestations of the alarm reaction included the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), corticoids and catecholamines, thymico-lymphatic involution, eosinopenia and peptic ulceration (Selye, 1976). The definition of the diseases of adaptation or stress-induced maladies is still cause of debate. The diseases of adaptation depend primarily upon an excessive or inappropriate response to indirect pathogens. Included are all "psychosomatic" diseases, allergies and other immunologic responses, as well as excessive inflammatory reactions. However, at least two topics still need further definition- first, connections between the type of stress and the type of disease and ,second, qualitative and quantitative definition of stress.