MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Ivana Buric
Brain, Belief, and Behaviour Lab
Centre for Psychology, Behaviour, and Achievement, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences
Coventry University, Coventry, United Kingdom
Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour
Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Genes that we inherited can change their activity - they can be active and produce proteins, but they can also stop producing proteins and remain silent. We are now beginning to understand what aspects of our environment affect the activity of which genes.
In this study, we analysed all the existing studies that examined the effects of mind-body interventions on the expression of our genes and found that mind-body techniques reduce the activity of genes that produce inflammatory proteins.
This pattern was found in all studies despite the fact that they vary in the amount of physical activity: Tai Chi, yoga, breathing techniques and different types of meditation. We believe that this effect is observed due to reduced stress.
When we experience something stressful, the brain regions associated with pain get activated and send that signal further to sypmathetic nervous system that produces epinephrine and norepinefrine, and activates nuclear factor kappa B - a molecule that travels to and activated the genes that produce inflammatory proteins. When we do
yoga or meditation, we learn to perceive situations differently and consequently experience less stress, which then prevents the production of inflammatory proteins.
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