This article has placed a strong emphasis on the epigenetic relationship between physiological, environmental, and cognitive activity. Epigenetic mechanisms offer a means for regulating and modifying gene activity, without altering the DNA sequence. These mechanisms include DNA methylation, small non-coding RNAs activity and histone modifications which lead to gene silencing, modification in protein production and open or closed domains of gene activity creation throughout the genome.
In order to achieve a state of peaceful mind and emotions characterized by the absence of recurrent thoughts, visuals, and emotional swings, mindful practices have long been regarded to be beneficial for improving well-being. These methods include a variety of meditation techniques, both sitting (such as mindfulness meditation, Vipassana, and breathing focus) and moving (such as yoga, quadrato motor training and Tai Chi). All of these techniques aim to bring about a state of mental silence that has positive effects on emotional control and health and alleviate stress-related symptoms of various diseases such as psychological disorders including mood and anxiety disorders, inflammatory diseases and aging. Various studies have suggested that the mindfulness meditation influence the body by means of epigenetic mechanisms. Differential epigenetic regulation affects a variety of genes, including those involved in neuroplasticity, learning, and memory as well as immune response modulators (such as cytokines) and glucocorticoids in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and neurotrophins like brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and nerve growth factor (NGF).
Yoga, Tai Chi, and Qigong all aim to attain inner silence via movement, which helps to enhance focus, self-control, and awareness. By lowering ROS levels, which are known to induce inflammation and accelerate aging, yoga has been found to enhance the body's redox status. In addition, Yoga can ease stress by lowering serum cortisol through the HPA axis and increases BDNF, a central regulator of neuroplasticity. Thus, it improves cardiovascular health as well as boost immune function. Quadrato motor training is another walking meditation that can improve attention, creativity and reflectivity by stimulating neuroplasticity leading to inter and intra hemispheric connectivity. There are several practices for sitting meditation, such as Transcendental Meditation (TM), Zen, Vipassana, Buddhist, Sudarshan Kriya (SK), Kirtan Kriya (KK) etc. They all aim to develop mindfulness, which is a state of present-moment non-judgmental awareness of the event, presumably attained through inner peace. They alter the concentrations of several metabolites and biomarkers, including hormones (such as cortisol, epinephrine and nor-epinephrine) and neurotransmitters (such as GABA and glutamate), as well as immunological and neuroendocrine variables impacted by stress and important for the onset and progression of illness.
Growing evidences suggest that in both short and long term meditation practitioners, differential transcription takes place in the genes involved in oxidative stress, DNA damage response, inflammatory response and metabolism with an outcome of reduced fatigue and stress, less depression and better immune activity. Although researchers are still far from discovering precise epigenetic markers linked to the condition of inner calmness, the pioneering studies accomplished so far suggest that this claim needs additional investigation.
Reference:
Venditti, S., Verdone, L., Reale, A., Vetriani, V., Caserta, M., & Zampieri, M. (2020). Molecules of Silence: Effects of Meditation on Gene Expression and Epigenetics. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 1767. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01767
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