Molecular Mechanisms of Meditation
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Molecular Mechanisms of Meditation Vishal Jindal & Sorab Gupta & Ritwik Das
Received: 10 February 2013 / Accepted: 1 May 2013 # Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
Abstract Meditation is a complex process involving change in cognition, memory, and social and emotional control, and causes improvement in various cardiovascular, neurological, autoimmune, and renal pathologies. Meditation also become widely used in medical and psychological treatment therapies for stress-related physical and mental disorders. But still, biological mechanisms in terms of effect on brain and body are poorly understood. This paper explains the basic changes due to meditation in cerebral cortex, prefrontal area, cingulate gyrus, neurotransmitters, white matter, autonomic nervous system, limbic system, cytokines, endorphins, hormones, etc. The following is a review of the current literature regarding the various neurophysiological mechanisms, neuro-endocrine mechanisms, neurochemical substrates, etc. that underlies the complex processes of meditation. Keywords Meditation . Prefrontal cortex . Neurological . Neuroendocrinology In Indian culture, meditation was prevalent from various past centuries in the names of Tap, yoga, asana, sidhi, and Samadhi. Meditation has proven benefits in psychological,
V. Jindal (*) GMCH, H. No. 102 GHS 51 sector 20, Panchkula, Haryana, India e-mail: [email protected] S. Gupta GMCH, H. No. 575 sector 2, Panchkula, Haryana, India e-mail: [email protected] R. Das GMCH, H. No. 3335 sector 24, Chandigarh, India e-mail: [email protected]
cardiovascular, renal, neurological, autoimmune, and pain disorders. It improves cognitive function, memory, provide emotional and social stability, decreases stress, increases tolerance, etc. But what is the basic mechanism of its action, how does it prove beneficial in so many aspects, on what part of the brain does it act, and a lot more questions arrive in our brain. We have tried to explain them through this review article. Meditation is described into parts; one is focused attention (FA) and other is open monitoring (OA). FA as a term describes the voluntary focusing of the mind on a particular object such as breathing, center of the forehead, any picture, etc. OM is nonreactive monitoring of the contents of experience, basically paying constant attention to your thoughts. Focused attention on tandem breathing is generally studied and practiced. Various investigations of meditative states have opened a new window for exploring its neurological correlates. These neuroimaging techniques include positron emission tomography, single-photon emission computed tomography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, electroencephalogram, and diffusion tensor imaging (assess integrity of connections of brain through fractional anisotropy).
Meditation and Cerebral Cortex The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is the anteriormost part of the frontal lobes of the brain, in front of the motor and premotor areas. It controls cognitive behavior, personality expression, decisio
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