Acute stress response modified by modest inhibition of growth hormone axis: A potential machinery of the anti-aging effect of calorie restriction

► Modest inhibition of GH in rats attenuated tissue injury due to lipopolysaccharide. ► Inhibition of GH suppressed activation of cytokine cascades by LPS. ► Inhibition of GH slightly reduced activation of NF-kB but augmented AP-1 activity. ► Inhibition of GH and calorie restriction similarly affected the stress response. ► The GH signaling could be involved in the effect of calorie restriction.