Disrupted ACTH and cortisol response to osmotic and non-osmotic stress in patients with arginine vasopressin deficiency

Abstract

Objective: Arginine vasopressin (AVP), synthesized in the hypothalamus and stored in the posterior pituitary, regulates osmotic balance and stress responses. During stress, AVP enhances corticotropin-releasing hormone-stimulated adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) secretion, with cortisol and AVP providing negative feedback regulation. Disruption in AVP production might impair this feedback, leading to sustained cortisol elevations. The current analysis aims to investigate the effect of hypertonic saline (osmotic stress) and arginine infusion (non-osmotic stress) on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis response between patients with AVP-Deficiency and primary polydipsia (PP).

Design: Secondary sub-analysis of a prospective diagnostic study conducted at seven tertiary centers that utilized hypertonic saline and arginine infusion for diagnostic evaluation of patients with hypotonic polyuria-polydipsia syndrome.

Methods: ACTH and cortisol levels were measured at baseline and the expected peak for both stimulation tests and groups. A pooled linear mixed-effects model (without stimulation type as a variable) was used to compare hormone responses between groups, followed by stimulation test-specific linear regression models to assess differences between both tests.

Results: Twenty patients with AVP-Deficiency and 10 patients with PP were included. In the pooled analysis, patients with AVP-Deficiency showed a significantly greater increase in plasma ACTH [7.0 ng/L (95% CI, 0.8-13.3), P = .04] and plasma cortisol [106 nmol/L (95% CI, 24-188), P = .02] compared to patients with PP. Upon hypertonic saline, the changes in plasma ACTH [0.3 ng/L (95% CI, -10.0 to 11.0)] and plasma cortisol [78 nmol/L (95% CI, -32 to 188)] were similar. However, upon arginine infusion, plasma ACTH [9.2 ng/L (95% CI, 1.8-17)] and plasma cortisol [141 nmol/L (95% CI, 40-242)] increases were significantly greater in patients with AVP-Deficiency.

Conclusion: An altered ACTH and cortisol response pattern to stress in patients with AVP-Deficiency was observed, indicating impaired regulation of the HPA axis. This alteration was primarily driven by differences observed for non-osmotic stress.

Keywords: arginine; corticotropin-releasing hormone; diabetes insipidus; hypertonic saline; hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis; hypothalamus; oxytocin; pituitary; stimulation test; vasopressin.