Dataset: Genomic Counter-Stress Changes Induced by Mind-Body Practice

Mind-body practices that elicit the relaxation response (RR) have been used worldwide for millennia to prevent and treat disease. The RR is believed to be the counterpart to stress response and is characterized by decreased oxygen consumption, increased exhaled nitric oxide, and reduced psychological distress. Individuals experiencing chronic psychological stress have the opposite pattern of physiology and a characteristic transcriptional profile. We hypothesized that consistent, long-term practice of RR techniques results in characteristic changes in gene expression. We tested this hypothesis by assessing the transcriptional profile of whole blood in healthy, long-term practitioners of daily RR practice (group M) in comparison to healthy controls (group N1). The signature obtained has been validated on new subject data. Experiment Overall Design: In the study, the gene expression profiling was performed on individuals with a long-term RR practice (group M; n=19) or those with no prior RR experience; novice (group N1; n=19). Group N1 novices, furthermore, underwent 8-weeks of RR training (Group N2; n=20) for the prospective analysis.As a validation of results , we developed an independent validation sets that includes gene expression profiling on 4 N1, 4 N2 and 6 M subjects.

Species:

human

Samples:

72

Source:

E-GEOD-10041

PubMed:

18596974

Updated:

Dec.12, 2014

Registered:

Aug.12, 2014