Yoga: unraveling the internal pharmacy – Impact on genome and epigenome
Main Article Content
Abstract
Complex and chronic lifestyle disorders have become the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. They involve multiple morbidities necessitating the attention of numerous healthcare facilities as well as community-based care too. Stress and anxiety brought on by the fast-paced life, unhealthy eating habits, sedentary lifestyle, poor quality of life, polypharmacy, and high medical costs have significantly influenced the development of such multimorbid conditions. Most chronic complex diseases share a similar underlying pathology including high levels of stress, inflammatory immune response, persistent activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis, oxidative stress, accelerated immune-aging, dysregulated blood flow, enhanced apoptosis and accelerated aging with shorter telomeres and DNA damage. These are modifiable factors which can impact disease progression and no single treatment modality in modern medicine can alone impact all these factors. As a result, the treatment must involve an integrated approach that targets both mind and body and each of these factors which form an architectural framework which supports the onset of these complex lifestyle disease and thus though we may enjoy longer lifespan, but it is accompanied by shorter health span. Yoga, a mind-body intervention with Indian roots, strives to bring about the synchronization of physical and mental health by unraveling and switching on the internal pharmacy and maintenance of homeostasis at cellular and molecular level.
Keywords:
Yoga, meditation, gene expression, epigenome, inflammation, healthy aging, health, complex
Article Details
How to Cite
DADA, Rima et al.
Yoga: unraveling the internal pharmacy – Impact on genome and epigenome.
Medical Research Archives, [S.l.], v. 11, n. 12, dec. 2023.
ISSN 2375-1924.
Available at: <https://esmed.org/MRA/mra/article/view/4877>. Date accessed: 15 may 2024.
doi: https://doi.org/10.18103/mra.v11i12.4877.
Section
Research Articles
The Medical Research Archives grants authors the right to publish and reproduce the unrevised contribution in whole or in part at any time and in any form for any scholarly non-commercial purpose with the condition that all publications of the contribution include a full citation to the journal as published by the Medical Research Archives.
References
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2. Stephens I. Medical Yoga Therapy. Children. 2017;4(2):12. doi:10.3390/children4020012
3. Singh VP, Khandelwal B, Sherpa NT. Psycho-neuro-endocrine-immune mechanisms of action of yoga in type II diabetes. Anc Sci Life. 2015;35(1):12-17. doi:10.4103/0257-7941.165623
4. Hernandez LM, Blazer DG, Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Assessing Interactions Among Social B. Genetics and Health. In: Genes, Behavior, and the Social Environment: Moving Beyond the Nature/ Nurture Debate. National Academies Press (US); 2006. Accessed November 10, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK19932/
5. Clapp M, Aurora N, Herrera L, Bhatia M, Wilen E, Wakefield S. Gut microbiota’s effect on mental health: The gut-brain axis. Clin Pract. 2017;7(4):987. doi:10.4081/cp.2017.987
6. Liu Q, Zheng Y, Goronzy JJ, Weyand CM. T cell aging as a risk factor for autoimmunity. J Autoimmun. 2023;137:102947.
doi:10.1016/j.jaut.2022.102947
7. Weyand CM, Goronzy JJ. The immunology of rheumatoid arthritis. Nat Immunol. 2021;22(1):10-18. doi:10.1038/s41590-020-00816-x
8. Adhikari B, Starkweather A, Xu W, et al. A feasibility study on yoga’s mechanism of action for chronic low back pain: psychological and neurophysiological changes, including global gene expression and DNA methylation, following a yoga intervention for chronic low back pain. Pilot Feasibility Stud. 2022;8(1):142. doi:10.1186/s40814-022-01103-2
9. Saatcioglu F. Regulation of gene expression by yoga, meditation and related practices: a review of recent studies. Asian J Psychiatry. 2013;6(1):74-77. doi:10.1016/j.ajp.2012.10.002
10. Chaudhry N, Bhandari RB, Gaur V. Yoga perspective on personal excellence and well-being. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2023;14(3): 100717. doi:10.1016/j.jaim.2023.100717
11. Gautam S, Kumar R, Kumar U, Kumar S, Luthra K, Dada R. Yoga maintains Th17/Treg cell homeostasis and reduces the rate of T cell aging in rheumatoid arthritis: a randomized controlled trial. Sci Rep. 2023;13(1):14924. doi:10.1038/s41598-023-42231-w
12. Gautam S, Kumar U, Kumar M, Rana D, Dada R. Yoga improves mitochondrial health and reduces severity of autoimmune inflammatory arthritis: A randomized controlled trial. Mitochondrion. 2021;58:147-159. doi:10.1016/j.mito.2021.03.004
13. Gautam S, Kumar M, Kumar U, Dada R. Effect of an 8-Week Yoga-Based Lifestyle Intervention on Psycho-Neuro-Immune Axis, Disease Activity, and Perceived Quality of Life in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Front Psychol. 2020;11:2259. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.02259
14. Dhawan V, Kumar M, Deka D, et al. Meditation & yoga: Impact on oxidative DNA damage & dysregulated sperm transcripts in male partners of couples with recurrent pregnancy loss. Indian J Med Res. 2018;148(Suppl1):S134-S139. doi:10.4103/ijmr.IJMR_1988_17
15. Dada T, Bhai N, Midha N, et al. Effect of Mindfulness Meditation on Intraocular Pressure and Trabecular Meshwork Gene Expression: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Am J Ophthalmol. 2021;223:308-321. doi:10.1016/j.ajo.2020.10.012
16. Dada T, Mittal D, Mohanty K, et al. Mindfulness Meditation Reduces Intraocular Pressure, Lowers Stress Biomarkers and Modulates Gene Expression in Glaucoma: A Randomized Controlled Trial. J Glaucoma. 2018;27(12):1061-1067. doi:10.1097/IJG.0000000000001088
17. Borthakur D, Kumar R, Dada R. Yoga: A Natural Solution to Decrease Disease Burden in Children of MTHFR Deficient Parents. Clin Ter. 2023;174(1):28-32. doi:10.7417/CT.2023.2493
18. Gautam S, Kumar U, Dada R. Yoga and its impact on chronic inflammatory autoimmune arthritis. Front Biosci Elite Ed. 2021;13(1):77-116. doi:10.2741/873
19. Venditti S, Verdone L, Reale A, Vetriani V, Caserta M, Zampieri M. Molecules of Silence: Effects of Meditation on Gene Expression and Epigenetics. Front Psychol. 2020;11:1767. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01767
20. Daniela M, Catalina L, Ilie O, Paula M, Daniel-Andrei I, Ioana B. Effects of Exercise Training on the Autonomic Nervous System with a Focus on Anti-Inflammatory and Antioxidants Effects. Antioxid Basel Switz. 2022;11(2):350. doi:10.3390/antiox11020350
21. Gupta S, Guleria RS. Involvement of Nuclear Factor-κB in Inflammation and Neuronal Plasticity Associated with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Cells. 2022;11(13):2034. doi:10.3390/cells11132034
22. Li QZ, Li P, Garcia GE, Johnson RJ, Feng L. Genomic profiling of neutrophil transcripts in Asian Qigong practitioners: a pilot study in gene regulation by mind-body interaction. J Altern Complement Med N Y N. 2005;11(1): 29-39. doi:10.1089/acm.2005.11.29
23. Dusek JA, Otu HH, Wohlhueter AL, et al. Genomic counter-stress changes induced by the relaxation response. PloS One. 2008;3(7):e2576. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002576
24. Qu S, Olafsrud SM, Meza-Zepeda LA, Saatcioglu F. Rapid gene expression changes in peripheral blood lymphocytes upon practice of a comprehensive yoga program. PloS One. 2013;8(4):e61910.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0061910
25. Bhasin MK, Dusek JA, Chang BH, et al. Relaxation response induces temporal transcriptome changes in energy metabolism, insulin secretion and inflammatory pathways. PloS One. 2013;8(5):e62817.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0062817
26. Rima D, Shiv BK, Bhavna C, Shilpa B, Saima K. Oxidative Stress Induced Damage to Paternal Genome and Impact of Meditation and Yoga - Can it Reduce Incidence of Childhood Cancer? Asian Pac J Cancer Prev APJCP. 2016;17(9):4517-4525.
27. Bisht S, Banu S, Srivastava S, et al. Sperm methylome alterations following yoga-based lifestyle intervention in patients of primary male infertility: A pilot study. Andrologia. 2020;52(4):e13551. doi:10.1111/and.13551
28. Kumar SB, Yadav R, Yadav RK, Tolahunase M, Dada R. Telomerase activity and cellular aging might be positively modified by a yoga-based lifestyle intervention. J Altern Complement Med N Y N. 2015;21(6):370-372. doi:10.1089/acm.2014.0298
29. Tolahunase M, Sagar R, Dada R. Impact of Yoga and Meditation on Cellular Aging in Apparently Healthy Individuals: A Prospective, Open-Label Single-Arm Exploratory Study. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2017;2017:7928981. doi:10.1155/2017/7928981
30. Gautam S, Tolahunase M, Kumar U, Dada R. Impact of yoga based mind-body intervention on systemic inflammatory markers and co-morbid depression in active Rheumatoid arthritis patients: A randomized controlled trial. Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2019;37(1):41-59. doi:10.3233/RNN-180875
31. Gupta S, Gautam S, Kumar U, Arora T, Dada R. Potential Role of Yoga Intervention in the Management of Chronic Non-malignant Pain. Evid-Based Complement Altern Med ECAM. 2022;2022:5448671. doi:10.1155/2022/5448671
32. Gautam S, Kumar U, Mishra R, Dada R. HLA-G 3’UTR polymorphisms & response to a yoga-based lifestyle intervention in rheumatoid arthritis: A randomized controlled trial. Indian J Med Res. 2022;155(2):253-263. doi:10.4103/ijmr.IJMR_3196_20
33. Gautam S, Saxena R, Dada T, Dada R. Yoga-Impact on Mitochondrial Health: Clinical Consequences. Ann Neurosci. 2021;28(3-4):114-116. doi:10.1177/09727531211009431
34. Gard T, Noggle JJ, Park CL, Vago DR, Wilson A. Potential self-regulatory mechanisms of yoga for psychological health. Front Hum Neurosci. 2014;8. Accessed November 10, 2023. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2014.00770
35. Tolahunase MR, Gautam S, Sagar R, Kumar M, Dada R. Yoga in major depressive disorder: molecular mechanisms and clinical utility. Front Biosci Sch Ed. 2021;13(1):56-81. doi:10.52586/S553
36. Naveen GH, Thirthalli J, Rao MG, Varambally S, Christopher R, Gangadhar BN. Positive therapeutic and neurotropic effects of yoga in depression: A comparative study. Indian J Psychiatry. 2013;55(Suppl 3):S400-S404. doi:10.4103/0019-5545.116313
37. Sankalp null, Dada T, Yadav RK, Faiq MA. Effect of Yoga-Based Ocular Exercises in Lowering of Intraocular Pressure in Glaucoma Patients: An Affirmative Proposition. Int J Yoga. 2018;11(3):239-241. doi:10.4103/ijoy.IJOY_55_17
38. Gagrani M, Faiq MA, Sidhu T, et al. Meditation enhances brain oxygenation, upregulates BDNF and improves quality of life in patients with primary open angle glaucoma: A randomized controlled trial. Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2018;36(6):741-753. doi:10.3233/RNN-180857
39. Al Aboud NM, Tupper C, Jialal I. Genetics, Epigenetic Mechanism. In: StatPearls. StatPearls Publishing; 2023. Accessed November 10, 2023. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532999/
40. Johnson AA, Akman K, Calimport SRG, Wuttke D, Stolzing A, de Magalhães JP. The Role of DNA Methylation in Aging, Rejuvenation, and Age-Related Disease. Rejuvenation Res. 2012;15(5):483-494. doi:10.1089/rej.2012.1324
41. Ren H, Collins V, Clarke SJ, et al. Epigenetic changes in response to tai chi practice: a pilot investigation of DNA methylation marks. Evid-Based Complement Altern Med ECAM. 2012;2012:841810. doi:10.1155/2012/841810
42. Harkess KN, Ryan J, Delfabbro PH, Cohen-Woods S. Preliminary indications of the effect of a brief yoga intervention on markers of inflammation and DNA methylation in chronically stressed women. Transl Psychiatry. 2016;6(11):e965. doi:10.1038/tp.2016.234
43. Chaix R, Alvarez-López MJ, Fagny M, et al. Epigenetic clock analysis in long-term meditators. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2017;85:210-214. doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.08.016
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