Is PTSD an Evolutionary Survival Adaptation Initiated by Unrestrained Cytokine Signaling and Maintained by Epigenetic Change?
Military Medicine April 21, 2022 Stephan Rudzki 7 citations
PTSD may be maintained by unrestrained cytokine signaling that induces epigenetic changes, promoting a defensive survival adaptation. The brain associates immune signals with past threats, initiating defensive behavior. Prolonged cholinergic withdrawal fosters chronic inflammation. IL-1β, an innate immune cytokine, regulates autonomic, glucocorticoid, and glutamate receptor functions, sleep, memory, and epigenetic enzymes; its levels correlate with PTSD severity and duration. Hydrocortisone given in acute sepsis can prevent PTSD, supporting unrestrained inflammation as a risk factor. Psychedelic drugs like MDMA, psilocybin, and ketamine have immunosuppressive effects that may contribute to their benefit. PTSD may be a cost of genomic flexibility that aids adaptation and survival.