Project description
Decoding cortisol rhythms to boost stress resilience
Chronic stress affects mental health worldwide, contributing to rising rates of conditions such as depression and anxiety. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions programme, the ERC funded RHYTHM project aims to uncover how daily cortisol rhythms influence people’s ability to cope with stress. Using novel technology to continuously monitor cortisol in real world settings, the project will investigate how differences in cortisol rhythmicity shape resilience, stress responses, and brain function. RHYTHM will also test whether disrupted cortisol rhythms can be restored in people with depression. By revealing how cortisol rhythms influence resilience and mental health, the project may open new avenues for targeted prevention and treatment of stress related mental disorders.
Objective
BACKGROUND
Stress has a major impact on everyday life, yet scientific understanding of resilience to stress remains limited. This is a global problem and leads to increases in stress-related disorders such as depression and anxiety. Cortisol is a key regulator of the stress response. Recent advances in measuring its circadian and ultradian rhythmicity may provide a scientific breakthrough in uncovering why some people are more resilient to stress than others.
AIM
Based on a novel scientifically rigorous framework, I aim to elucidate the role of cortisol’s circadian and ultradian rhythms as critical mechanisms underlying stress resilience and mental health.
APPROACH
This comprehensive study combines controlled experimental studies with real-world data, bridging mechanistic insights with practical real-world applications. Recent technological advancements for the first time allow 24h cortisol monitoring at high temporal solution in daily life settings. By combining different research disciplines with technological advancements, I will test three leading hypotheses: (1) daily-life stress prospectively shapes mental health via cortisol rhythmicity in low- and high-resilient individuals; (2) pharmacologically elevated nocturnal cortisol levels influence next-day stress reactivity and brain function in healthy individuals; (3) abnormal cortisol rhythms can be reversed and improve resilience with a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist in a proof-of-concept intervention study in depressed patients with flattened cortisol rhythmicity.
IMPACT
Capitalizing on rapid advances in sampling technology in naturalistic settings and sophisticated data analytics, RHYTHM will provide unprecedented insight into how cortisol rhythmicity influences stress resilience and mental health. Understanding cortisol rhythmicity as a mechanism for resilience following stress exposure could unlock new ways to cope with stress and lead to innovative interventions.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2025-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1081 HV Amsterdam
Netherlands
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.