Distinct Multisystem Stress Response Phenotypes During the Montreal Imaging Stress Task in Adolescents

Adolescence is a critical developmental period during which stress response systems mature and vulnerability to psychopathology increases. Although prior research has examined individual components of the stress response, fewer studies have investigated coordinated activation across the parasympathetic (PNS), sympathetic (SNS), and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) systems in response to the Montreal Imaging Stress Task (MIST) or within neuroimaging-based stress paradigms.  The present study examined multisystem stress coordination in adolescents during the Montreal Imaging Stress Task (MIST) and tested predictions derived from the Adaptive Calibration Model, which proposes that stress systems (PNS, SNS, and HPA) respond in a coordinated and hierarchical manner to environmental demands. Participants completed the MIST while cortisol, salivary alpha-amylase (sAA), and heart rate variability (HRV) were collected across baseline (pre-stress), reactivity (during stress), and recovery (post-stress) phases. Hierarchical piecewise growth modeling was used to examine how these physiological systems changed over time and whether they interacted in predicting cortisol responses, while latent class growth analysis was used to identify subgroups of individuals with similar patterns of stress responding within the sample. The MIST elicited activation across all three stress systems; however, interaction effects between autonomic and HPA responses were not statistically significant. Latent class analysis supported a two-profile solution characterized by Buffered and Sensitive phenotypes, which differed in the magnitude of PNS withdrawal, SNS activation, and cortisol reactivity. No significant differences were observed between profiles in trait anxiety, neural activation, or psychosis risk. Overall, this study shows the importance of using a multisystem approach to understand stress in adolescence. Even without significant interaction effects, identifying distinct stress response profiles provides insight into individual differences in how adolescents respond to stress. These patterns may be useful for understanding early vulnerability to stress related psychopathology. Future research with larger and higher risk samples, as well as more detailed neural measures such as functional connectivity, will help further clarify the relationship between stress physiology and brain function during this critical developmental period.