# Neuroendocrine Mechanisms Underlying Perimenopausal Risk for Trauma-Related Hyperarousal in Black Women

> **NIH NIH R01** · EMORY UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $762,041

## Abstract

Summary
The cumulative rate of repeated trauma exposure is greater in Black communities of urban, low socioeconomic
status and is associated with increased prevalence of adverse, posttraumatic mental health outcomes,
including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is associated with trauma-related hyperarousal (TRH)
and dysregulated fear responses that are dependent upon brain regions that modulate responses to threat,
including the amygdala and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. One biological factor that confers increased
risk for TRH is female sex. While rigorous studies have shown that low levels of the steroid hormone estradiol
(E2) are associated with increased risk for TRH and hyper-sensitivity to threat in trauma-exposed women,
these prior studies compared women who naturally differed from one another in E2 levels regardless of
reproductive status/stage. Thus, further work is needed to determine how changes in E2 over the menopausal
transition increase vulnerability to TRH and hyper-reactivity to threat in trauma-exposed women. The current
study is well positioned to address this gap in knowledge given our recruitment of perimenopausal Black
women from a high trauma risk population. The proposed research will combine clinical interviews, fear
psychophysiology, neuroimaging, and neuroendocrinology to examine how the perimenopause and changes in
E2 levels over time influence TRH and responsivity to threat. Investigating how neuroendocrine changes
during the menopausal transition influence fear psychophysiology and amygdala reactivity to threat to impact
TRH is critical for the identification, assessment, and treatment of these symptoms during the perimenopause
in women, especially Black women, who experience disproportionately higher rates of cumulative trauma
exposure and PTSD.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10348305
- **Project number:** 1R01MH128244-01
- **Recipient organization:** EMORY UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Vasiliki Michopoulos
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $762,041
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-05-06 → 2027-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10348305

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10348305, Neuroendocrine Mechanisms Underlying Perimenopausal Risk for Trauma-Related Hyperarousal in Black Women (1R01MH128244-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10348305. Licensed CC0.

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