Stress and immunity: Implications for viral disease and wound healing

It is now well established that psychological stress can downregulate the c ellular immune response Communication between the central nervous system an d the immune system occurs via a complex network of bidirectional signals l inking the nervous, endocrine, and immune systems. Stress disrupts the home ostasis of this network, which in turn, alters immune function. In this rev iew we discuss. the role of stress in modulating cellular immune function a nd the potential health implications of this downregulation.