1) I am reading that for short-term, the adrenal medulla and its assoc. hormones of epinephrine/norepinephrine, glucagon and insulin, and cortisol are involved in its response.
Is this correct? Are both nervous system and endocrine system involved?
Ya, but those hormones you mentioned are mostly endocrine. Cortisol effects the limbic system in the brain.
The rapid, short-term response to stress, called the fight-or-flight response, is carried out by hormones of the adrenal medulla. The hypothalamus sends nerve impulses to the nerve endings in the adrenal medulla. This causes the medulla to secrete the neurohormones epinephrine and norepinephrine. These hormones cause increases in glycogen breakdown leading to increased blood glucose levels, blood pressure and breathing rate, metabolism, and alertness. They cause decreases in digestive, excretory, and reproductive activity due to changes in blood flow.
The long-term response to stress, which is an endocrine, rather than a nervous-system, response is mediated by the adrenal cortex. The hypothalamus stimulates the anterior pituitary to release ACTH, which stimulates the production of corticosteroids by the adrenal cortex. Two types of corticosteroids participate in this reaction: glucocorticoids such as cortisol, which increase metabolism by stimulating glucose production from fats and proteins, and mineralocorticoids, which regulate salt and water balance, leading to increased blood pressure and volume, and cause partial immune-system suppression.