Large-scale genomic study reveals robust activation of the immune system following advanced Inner Engineering meditation retreat
dc.contributor.author | Chandran, Vijayendran | |
dc.contributor.author | Bermúdez, Mei-Ling | |
dc.contributor.author | Koka, Mert | |
dc.contributor.author | Chandran, Brindha | |
dc.contributor.author | Pawale, Dhanashri | |
dc.contributor.author | Vishnubhotla, Ramana | |
dc.contributor.author | Alankar, Suresh | |
dc.contributor.author | Maturi, Raj | |
dc.contributor.author | Subramaniam, Balachundhar | |
dc.contributor.author | Sadhasivam, Senthilkumar | |
dc.contributor.department | Anesthesia, School of Medicine | en_US |
dc.date.accessioned | 2023-07-07T16:32:53Z | |
dc.date.available | 2023-07-07T16:32:53Z | |
dc.date.issued | 2021 | |
dc.description.abstract | The positive impact of meditation on human well-being is well documented, yet its molecular mechanisms are incompletely understood. We applied a comprehensive systems biology approach starting with whole-blood gene expression profiling combined with multilevel bioinformatic analyses to characterize the coexpression, transcriptional, and protein-protein interaction networks to identify a meditation-specific core network after an advanced 8-d Inner Engineering retreat program. We found the response to oxidative stress, detoxification, and cell cycle regulation pathways were down-regulated after meditation. Strikingly, 220 genes directly associated with immune response, including 68 genes related to interferon signaling, were up-regulated, with no significant expression changes in the inflammatory genes. This robust meditation-specific immune response network is significantly dysregulated in multiple sclerosis and severe COVID-19 patients. The work provides a foundation for understanding the effect of meditation and suggests that meditation as a behavioral intervention can voluntarily and nonpharmacologically improve the immune response for treating various conditions associated with excessive or persistent inflammation with a dampened immune system profile. | en_US |
dc.eprint.version | Final published version | en_US |
dc.identifier.citation | Chandran V, Bermúdez ML, Koka M, et al. Large-scale genomic study reveals robust activation of the immune system following advanced Inner Engineering meditation retreat. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021;118(51):e2110455118. doi:10.1073/pnas.2110455118 | en_US |
dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1805/34244 | |
dc.language.iso | en_US | en_US |
dc.publisher | National Academy of Science | en_US |
dc.relation.isversionof | 10.1073/pnas.2110455118 | en_US |
dc.relation.journal | Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) | en_US |
dc.rights | Publisher Policy | en_US |
dc.source | PMC | en_US |
dc.subject | Meditation | en_US |
dc.subject | Immune | en_US |
dc.subject | Isha yoga | en_US |
dc.subject | Inner Engineering | en_US |
dc.subject | COVID-19 | en_US |
dc.title | Large-scale genomic study reveals robust activation of the immune system following advanced Inner Engineering meditation retreat | en_US |
dc.type | Article | en_US |
ul.alternative.fulltext | https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8713789/ | en_US |