1 1012 152 EFFECTS OF ONE MONTH OF COMMON YOGA PROTOCOL PRACTICE APPEAR TO BE MEDIATED BY THE ANGIOGENIC AND NEUROGENIC PATHWAY: A PILOT STUDY. OBJECTIVE: TO EXAMINE THE MOLECULAR EFFECTS OF MINDFUL ACTIVITIES SUCH AS YOGA AND MEDITATION DESIGN: THIS WAS AN OPEN LABEL SINGLE ARM EXPLORATORY YOGA INTERVENTION STUDY. STUDY PARTICIPANTS: 64 HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS WITHIN THE AGE OF 18-60 YEARS WERE RECRUITED FOR THIS ONE MONTH YOGA INTERVENTION STUDY. INTERVENTION: COMMON YOGA PROTOCOL (CYP) IS A STANDARDIZED YOGA PROTOCOL RELEASED BY MINISTRY OF AYUSH, INDIA FOR INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY. IT INCLUDES ALL ASPECTS OF YOGA I.E. ASANAS, PRANAYAMA AND MEDITATION. IT IS DESIGNED FOR ADOPTION BY ALL AGE GROUPS FOR THE HEALTH OF COMMUNITY. OUTCOME MEASURES: THE PARTICIPANTS WERE ASSESSED FOR BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS INCLUDING FASTING SUGAR AND LIPID PROFILE. THE MOLECULAR MARKERS OF NEUROGENESIS (I.E. BRAIN DERIVED NEUROTROPIC FACTOR, BDNF) AND ANGIOGENESIS (I.E. VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR, VEGF AND ANGIOGENIN) ALONG WITH AMYLOID BETA (MARKER RELATED TO NEURO-DEGENERATIVE DISEASES) WERE ASSESSED. ALL THE ASSESSMENTS WERE MADE AT BASELINE AND AFTER ONE MONTH OF THE INTERVENTION. RESULTS: AFTER ONE MONTH OF CYP PRACTICE HIGH DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN (HDL) LEVELS INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY (P<0.001), ALTHOUGH OTHER BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS I.E. FASTING SUGAR AND OTHER LIPID ASSESSMENTS WERE FOUND TO BE UNALTERED. ANGIOGENESIS MARKER, ANGIOGENIN WAS INCREASED SIGNIFICANTLY (P<0.002), OTHER ANGIOGENESIS MARKER VEGF DID NOT SHOW ANY CHANGE ALONG WITH BDNF, MARKER OF NEUROGENESIS. AMYLOID BETA LEVELS WERE ALSO UNALTERED. EVEN THOUGH INDIVIDUAL LEVELS OF VEGF AND AMYLOID BETA DID NOT SHOW ANY CHANGE, PROPORTION OF VEGF TO AMYLOID BETA SHOWED A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE (P<0.001) AFTER ONE MONTH OF CYP INTERVENTION INDICATING THAT THE CHANGE IN VEGF LEVELS WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER THAN THE CHANGE IN AMYLOID BETA LEVELS. CONCLUSION: CYP PRACTICE MAY INFLUENCE CELL SURVIVAL PATHWAYS MEDIATED BY ANGIOGENIC AND NEUROGENIC CROSS TALK. HENCE, CYP CAN BE CONSIDERED AS A PREVENTIVE MEASURE FOR DISEASES ASSOCIATED WITH IMPAIRED ANGIOGENIC AND NEUROGENIC MECHANISM. THIS IS THE FIRST STUDY TO EXAMINE THE EFFECTS OF CYP AT THE MOLECULAR LEVEL.	2021	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
2 1634  38 MODELING THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THE PROGRESSION OF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE IN A DISH. ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE (AD) ACCOUNTS FOR 80% OF ALL DEMENTIA CASES, MAKING IT THE MOST COMMON FORM OF DEMENTIA. AGING SERVES AS THE MAIN RISK FACTOR FOR AD, BUT EARLY ONSET AD CAN ALSO OCCUR IN INDIVIDUALS YOUNGER THAN 65 YEARS. AD RESULTS FROM PROGRESSIVE NEURODEGENERATION LEADING TO DYSFUNCTIONAL SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION IN THE BRAIN. THE CASCADE HYPOTHESIS OF AD STATES THAT AMYLOID PRECURSOR PROTEIN (APP) METABOLISM BECOMES IMPAIRED EITHER BY MUTATION OR AN INTERLEUKIN-MEDIATED STRESS RESPONSE TO INJURY, RESULTING IN THE SPLICING OF HARMFUL OLIGOMERIC FORMS OF AMYLOID BETA (ABETA). THESE OLIGOMERS DISRUPT EXTRACELLULAR RECEPTOR BINDING, INTRACELLULAR FUNCTION, AND CELLULAR MEMBRANE INTEGRITY. YOGA AND MEDITATIVE PRACTICES SLOW THE PROGRESSION OF THE COGNITIVE DECLINE ASSOCIATED WITH AD. HOWEVER, THE BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS UNDERLYING THIS THERAPEUTIC EFFECT REMAIN ELUSIVE. HERE, WE INVESTIGATED THE ABILITY OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS RELEASED DURING YOGA AND MEDITATIVE PRACTICES TO RESCUE NEURONS FROM SYNAPTIC DYSFUNCTION IN AN IN VITRO ALZHEIMER'S MODEL CREATED BY CULTURING BASAL FOREBRAIN CHOLINERGIC NEURONS WITH PHYSIOLOGICALLY RELEVANT LEVELS OF THE I-42 ISOFORM OF OLIGOMERIC ABETA (OALPHABETAI-42). WE FOUND THAT THE NEUROTRANSMITTERS DOPAMINE AND HISTAMINE PRODUCE A COOPERATIVE ACTION WITH SEROTONIN TO REVERSE THE LOSS OF CHOLINE ACETYLTRANSFERASE (CHAT) BY OALPHABETAI-42. THE LOSS OF CHAT, THE ENZYME RESPONSIBLE FOR PROCESSING THE CHOLINERGIC NEUROTRANSMITTER ACETYLCHOLINE, CONTRIBUTES TO THE SYNAPTIC DYSFUNCTION EXPERIENCED DURING AD. THESE NEUROTRANSMITTERS INHIBIT NITRIC OXIDE SYNTHESIS CAUSED BY OALPHABETAI-42, PREVENTING OXIDATIVE AND NITROSATIVE STRESS. SEROTONIN ACTIVATES AN ALTERNATE CLEAVAGE OF APP TO PRODUCE A FRAGMENT WITH KNOWN NEUROTROPHIC EFFECTS, GIVING IT THE UNIQUE ABILITY TO INHIBIT THE OALPHABETAI-42 PRODUCTION CYCLE. WE HYPOTHESIZE HERE THAT THESE CONCERTED ACTIONS LEAD TO THE PROTECTION OF CHOLINERGIC SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION IN AD.	2018	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
3 2847  48 YOGA, MEDITATION AND MIND-BODY HEALTH: INCREASED BDNF, CORTISOL AWAKENING RESPONSE, AND ALTERED INFLAMMATORY MARKER EXPRESSION AFTER A 3-MONTH YOGA AND MEDITATION RETREAT. THIRTY-EIGHT INDIVIDUALS (MEAN AGE: 34.8 YEARS OLD) PARTICIPATING IN A 3-MONTH YOGA AND MEDITATION RETREAT WERE ASSESSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION FOR PSYCHOMETRIC MEASURES, BRAIN DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR (BDNF), CIRCADIAN SALIVARY CORTISOL LEVELS, AND PRO- AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES. PARTICIPATION IN THE RETREAT WAS FOUND TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH DECREASES IN SELF-REPORTED ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION AS WELL AS INCREASES IN MINDFULNESS. AS HYPOTHESIZED, INCREASES IN THE PLASMA LEVELS OF BDNF AND INCREASES IN THE MAGNITUDE OF THE CORTISOL AWAKENING RESPONSE (CAR) WERE ALSO OBSERVED. THE NORMALIZED CHANGE IN BDNF LEVELS WAS INVERSELY CORRELATED WITH BSI-18 ANXIETY SCORES AT BOTH THE PRE-RETREAT (R = 0.40, P < 0.05) AND POST-RETREAT (R = 0.52, P < 0.005) SUCH THAT THOSE WITH GREATER ANXIETY SCORES TENDED TO EXHIBIT SMALLER PRE- TO POST-RETREAT INCREASES IN PLASMA BDNF LEVELS. IN LINE WITH A HYPOTHESIZED DECREASE IN INFLAMMATORY PROCESSES RESULTING FROM THE YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTICES, WE FOUND THAT THE PLASMA LEVEL OF THE ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE INTERLEUKIN-10 WAS INCREASED AND THE PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE INTERLEUKIN-12 WAS REDUCED AFTER THE RETREAT. CONTRARY TO OUR INITIAL HYPOTHESES, PLASMA LEVELS OF OTHER PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES, INCLUDING INTERFERON GAMMA (IFN-GAMMA), TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR (TNF-ALPHA), INTERLEUKIN-1BETA (IL-1BETA), INTERLEUKIN-6 (IL-6), AND INTERLEUKIN-8 (IL-8) WERE INCREASED AFTER THE RETREAT. GIVEN EVIDENCE FROM PREVIOUS STUDIES OF THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF MEDITATIVE PRACTICES ON MENTAL FITNESS, AUTONOMIC HOMEOSTASIS AND INFLAMMATORY STATUS, WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT THESE FINDINGS ARE RELATED TO THE MEDITATIVE PRACTICES THROUGHOUT THE RETREAT; HOWEVER, SOME OF THE OBSERVED CHANGES MAY ALSO BE RELATED TO OTHER ASPECTS OF THE RETREAT SUCH AS PHYSICAL EXERCISE-RELATED COMPONENTS OF THE YOGA PRACTICE AND DIET. WE HYPOTHESIZE THAT THE PATTERNS OF CHANGE OBSERVED HERE REFLECT MIND-BODY INTEGRATION AND WELL-BEING. THE INCREASED BDNF LEVELS OBSERVED IS A POTENTIAL MEDIATOR BETWEEN MEDITATIVE PRACTICES AND BRAIN HEALTH, THE INCREASED CAR IS LIKELY A REFLECTION OF INCREASED DYNAMIC PHYSIOLOGICAL AROUSAL, AND THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE DUAL ENHANCEMENT OF PRO- AND ANTI-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE CHANGES TO HEALTHY IMMUNOLOGIC FUNCTIONING IS DISCUSSED.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
4  324  35 ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL PARAMETERS IN CLIMACTERIC YOGA PRACTITIONERS. OBJECTIVE: THIS STUDY AIMED TO EVALUATE ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL PARAMETERS IN CLIMACTERIC YOGA PRACTITIONERS. METHODS: THIS STUDY INVESTIGATED 108 CLIMACTERIC WOMEN. WE RECRUITED 28 WOMEN BETWEEN 40 AND 65 YEARS OLD WHO STARTED YOGA PRACTICES IN PREMENOPAUSE AND HAD ALREADY PRACTICED FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS. AS CONTROLS, WE SELECTED 30 PHYSICAL ACTIVITY (PA) PRACTITIONERS WHO HAD PRACTICED FOR AT LEAST 5 YEARS AND 50 SEDENTARY WOMEN IN THE SAME AGE RANGE. WE CONDUCED ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND BLOOD PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS. RESULTS: THE YOGA GROUP HAD SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER FASTING BLOOD GLUCOSE THAN THE PA PRACTITIONERS AND SEDENTARY WOMEN. YOGA PRACTITIONERS ALSO HAD LOWER WEIGHT, BODY MASS INDEX, WAIST CIRCUMFERENCE, BODY FAT PERCENTAGE AND WAIST-TO-HEIGHT RATIO; HIGHER LEVELS OF HIGH-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN CHOLESTEROL; LOWER LEVELS OF TRIGLYCERIDES, INSULIN, HOMEOSTASIS MODEL ASSESSMENT OF INSULIN RESISTANCE, URIC ACID, APOLIPOPROTEIN B AND HIGH-SENSITIVITY C-REACTIVE PROTEIN; AND LOWER FREQUENCY OF METABOLIC SYNDROME, LIPID ACCUMULATION PRODUCT, VISCERAL ADIPOSITY INDEX AND SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE THAN THE SEDENTARY WOMEN. CONCLUSION: YOGA PRACTITIONERS HAD LOWER GLUCOSE SERUM CONCENTRATIONS THAN THE PA PRACTITIONERS AND SEDENTARY WOMEN. OVERALL, THE YOGA GROUP ALSO HAD BETTER ANTHROPOMETRIC, BIOCHEMICAL AND CLINICAL VARIABLES THAN THE OTHER GROUPS. ALTHOUGH FURTHER INVESTIGATION IS REQUIRED, YOGA PRACTICE IN PREMENOPAUSE SEEMS TO BE BENEFICIAL FOR WOMEN WHEN THEY REACH MENOPAUSE.	2022	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
5 1392  37 IMPACT OF YOGA AND MEDITATION ON CELLULAR AGING IN APPARENTLY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS: A PROSPECTIVE, OPEN-LABEL SINGLE-ARM EXPLORATORY STUDY. THIS STUDY WAS DESIGNED TO EXPLORE THE IMPACT OF YOGA AND MEDITATION BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION (YMLI) ON CELLULAR AGING IN APPARENTLY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. DURING THIS 12-WEEK PROSPECTIVE, OPEN-LABEL, SINGLE ARM EXPLORATORY STUDY, 96 APPARENTLY HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS WERE ENROLLED TO RECEIVE YMLI. THE PRIMARY ENDPOINTS WERE ASSESSMENT OF THE CHANGE IN LEVELS OF CARDINAL BIOMARKERS OF CELLULAR AGING IN BLOOD FROM BASELINE TO WEEK 12, WHICH INCLUDED DNA DAMAGE MARKER 8-HYDROXY-2'-DEOXYGUANOSINE (8-OH2DG), OXIDATIVE STRESS MARKERS REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS), AND TOTAL ANTIOXIDANT CAPACITY (TAC), AND TELOMERE ATTRITION MARKERS TELOMERE LENGTH AND TELOMERASE ACTIVITY. THE SECONDARY ENDPOINTS WERE ASSESSMENT OF METABOTROPHIC BLOOD BIOMARKERS ASSOCIATED WITH CELLULAR AGING, WHICH INCLUDED CORTISOL, BETA-ENDORPHIN, IL-6, BDNF, AND SIRTUIN-1. AFTER 12 WEEKS OF YMLI, THERE WERE SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS IN BOTH THE CARDINAL BIOMARKERS OF CELLULAR AGING AND THE METABOTROPHIC BIOMARKERS INFLUENCING CELLULAR AGING COMPARED TO BASELINE VALUES. THE MEAN LEVELS OF 8-OH2DG, ROS, CORTISOL, AND IL-6 WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER AND MEAN LEVELS OF TAC, TELOMERASE ACTIVITY, BETA-ENDORPHIN, BDNF, AND SIRTUIN-1 WERE SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED (ALL VALUES P < 0.05) POST-YMLI. THE MEAN LEVEL OF TELOMERE LENGTH WAS INCREASED BUT THE FINDING WAS NOT SIGNIFICANT (P = 0.069). YMLI SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THE RATE OF CELLULAR AGING IN APPARENTLY HEALTHY POPULATION.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
6 1347  33 HYPOXIA IN CNS PATHOLOGIES: EMERGING ROLE OF MIRNA-BASED NEUROTHERAPEUTICS AND YOGA BASED ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES. CELLULAR RESPIRATION IS A VITAL PROCESS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF LIFE. ANY CONDITION THAT RESULTS IN DEPRIVATION OF OXYGEN (ALSO TERMED AS HYPOXIA) MAY EVENTUALLY LEAD TO DELETERIOUS EFFECTS ON THE FUNCTIONING OF TISSUES. BRAIN BEING THE HIGHEST CONSUMER OF OXYGEN IS PRONE TO INCREASED RISK OF HYPOXIA-INDUCED NEUROLOGICAL INSULTS. THIS IN TURN HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH MANY DISEASES OF CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM (CNS) SUCH AS STROKE, ALZHEIMER'S, ENCEPHALOPATHY ETC. ALTHOUGH SEVERAL STUDIES HAVE INVESTIGATED THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS UNDERLYING ISCHEMIC/HYPOXIC CNS DISEASES, THE KNOWLEDGE ABOUT PROTECTIVE THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES TO AMELIORATE THE AFFECTED NEURONAL CELLS IS MEAGER. THIS HAS AUGMENTED THE NEED TO IMPROVE OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE HYPOXIC AND ISCHEMIC EVENTS OCCURRING IN THE BRAIN AND IDENTIFY NOVEL AND ALTERNATE TREATMENT MODALITIES FOR SUCH INSULTS. MICRORNA (MIRNAS), SMALL NON-CODING RNA MOLECULES, HAVE RECENTLY EMERGED AS POTENTIAL NEUROPROTECTIVE AGENTS AS WELL AS TARGETS, UNDER HYPOXIC CONDITIONS. THESE 18-22 NUCLEOTIDE LONG RNA MOLECULES ARE PROFUSELY PRESENT IN BRAIN AND OTHER ORGANS AND FUNCTION AS GENE REGULATORS BY CLEAVING AND SILENCING THE GENE EXPRESSION. IN BRAIN, THESE ARE KNOWN TO BE INVOLVED IN NEURONAL DIFFERENTIATION AND PLASTICITY. THEREFORE, TARGETING MIRNA EXPRESSION REPRESENTS A NOVEL THERAPEUTIC APPROACH TO INTERCEDE AGAINST HYPOXIC AND ISCHEMIC BRAIN INJURY. IN THE FIRST PART OF THIS REVIEW, WE WILL DISCUSS THE NEUROPHYSIOLOGICAL CHANGES CAUSED AS A RESULT OF HYPOXIA, FOLLOWED BY THE CONTRIBUTION OF HYPOXIA IN THE NEURODEGENERATIVE DISEASES. SECONDLY, WE WILL PROVIDE RECENT UPDATES AND INSIGHTS INTO THE ROLES OF MIRNA IN THE REGULATION OF GENES IN OXYGEN AND GLUCOSE DEPRIVED BRAIN IN ASSOCIATION WITH CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS AND HOW THESE CAN BE TARGETED AS NEUROPROTECTIVE AGENTS FOR CNS INJURIES. FINALLY, WE WILL EMPHASIZE ON ALTERNATE BREATHING OR YOGIC INTERVENTIONS TO OVERCOME THE HYPOXIA ASSOCIATED ANOMALIES THAT COULD ULTIMATELY LEAD TO IMPROVEMENT IN CEREBRAL PERFUSION.	2017	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
7 2038  48 TELOMERASE ACTIVITY AND CELLULAR AGING MIGHT BE POSITIVELY MODIFIED BY A YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION. OBJECTIVES: RECENT STUDIES SHOWED THAT A BRIEF YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION WAS EFFICACIOUS IN REDUCING LEVELS OF OXIDATIVE STRESS AND CELLULAR AGING IN OBESE MEN. THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS CASE REPORT WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFICACY OF THIS INTERVENTION IN REDUCING THE LEVELS OF BIOCHEMICAL MARKERS OF CELLULAR AGEING, OXIDATIVE STRESS, AND INFLAMMATION AT BASELINE (DAY 0), AT THE END OF ACTIVE INTERVENTION (DAY 10), AND FOLLOW-UP AT DAY 90. DESIGN: SINGLE CASE REPORT FROM A PROSPECTIVE ONGOING STUDY WITH PRE-POST DESIGN ASSESSING THE LEVEL OF VARIOUS MARKERS OF CELLULAR AGING. SETTING: INTEGRAL HEALTH CLINIC, AN OUTPATIENT FACILITY CONDUCTING MEDITATION AND YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION PROGRAMS FOR MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES. PATIENT: A 31-YEAR-OLD MAN WITH CLASS I OBESITY (BODY-MASS INDEX, 29.5 KG/M(2)) WHO PRESENTED TO THE MEDICINE OUTPATIENT DEPARTMENT AT ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES, NEW DELHI, INDIA, WITH A HISTORY OF FATIGUE, DIFFICULTY LOSING WEIGHT, AND LACK OF MOTIVATION. HE NOTED A MARKED DECREASE IN HIS ENERGY LEVEL, PARTICULARLY IN THE AFTERNOON. INTERVENTION: A PRETESTED INTERVENTION PROGRAM INCLUDED ASANAS (POSTURES), PRANAYAMA (BREATHING EXERCISES), STRESS MANAGEMENT, GROUP DISCUSSIONS, LECTURES, AND INDIVIDUALIZED ADVICE. RESULTS: FROM BASELINE (DAY 0) TO DAY 90, THE ACTIVITY OF TELOMERASE AND LEVELS OF BETA-ENDORPHINS, PLASMA CORTISOL, AND INTERLEUKIN-6 INCREASED, AND A SUSTAINED REDUCTION IN OXIDATIVE STRESS MARKERS, SUCH AS REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES AND 8-HYDROXY-2-DEOXY-GUANOSINE LEVELS. CONCLUSIONS: ADOPTING YOGA/MEDITATION-BASED LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION CAUSES REVERSAL OF MARKERS OF AGING, MAINLY OXIDATIVE STRESS, TELOMERASE ACTIVITY, AND OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE. THIS MAY NOT ONLY DELAY AGING AND PROLONG A YOUTHFUL HEALTHY LIFE BUT ALSO DELAY OR PREVENT ONSET OF SEVERAL LIFESTYLE-RELATED DISEASES, OF WHICH OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION ARE THE CHIEF CAUSE. THIS REPORT SUGGESTS THIS SIMPLE LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION MAY BE THERAPEUTIC FOR OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE AND OXIDATIVE STRESS.	2015	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   
8 2153  34 THE EFFECTS OF SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA ON SOME PHYSIOLOGICAL AND BIOCHEMICAL PARAMETERS IN MILD HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS. AN OPEN LABEL INTERVENTION STUDY WAS UNDERTAKEN ON 26 MILD HYPERTENSIVES AND 26 APPARENTLY HEALTHY ADULTS (30-60 Y), FOR THE EFFECT OF SUDARSHAN KRIYA YOGA PRACTICE FOR TWO MONTHS AS COMPLEMENTARY THERAPY. IN THE HYPERTENSIVES, THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE (P < 0.01), SERUM UREA (P < 0.01) AND PLASMA MDA (MALONDIALDEHYDE ADDUCTS) AS OXIDATIVE STRESS MARKER (P < 0.05). OTHER PARAMETERS; VIZ.; PLASMA LEVELS OF CHOLESTEROL, TRIGLYCERIDES, GLUCOSE, DID NOT CHANGE SIGNIFICANTLY (P > 0.1). THE PATTERN OF CHANGE IN MOST OF THE STUDY PARAMETERS WAS SUCH THAT VALUES ABOVE NORMAL RANGE WERE LOWERED BUT VALUES WITHIN NORMAL RANGE WERE UNALTERED. THE ACTION OF YOGA ON DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, MALONDIALDEHYDE ADDUCTS AND KIDNEY FUNCTION IN HYPERTENSIVES WAS OF COUNTERACTIVE NATURE AND FELT TO BE DISTINCTLY DIFFERENT THAN THE EFFECT OF DRUGS.	2011	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
9 2486  38 YOGA AS AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH FOR PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF ORAL CANCER. DESPITE TREMENDOUS ADVANCEMENTS IN MEDICINE, THE NUMBER OF ORAL CANCER CASES CONTINUES TO INCREASE, AND THE NEED FOR INTEGRATING ALTERNATE MEDICINE OR ADOPTING AN INTEGRATIVE APPROACH HAS BECOME A COMPELLING COST-EFFECTIVE REQUIREMENT FOR THE MANAGEMENT AND TREATMENT OF DISEASES. CONVENTIONAL TREATMENT OF ORAL CANCER INVOLVES SURGERY FOLLOWED BY RADIOTHERAPY WITH OR WITHOUT CHEMOTHERAPY WHICH CAUSES SEVERAL COMPLICATIONS INCLUDING POOR QUALITY OF LIFE AND HIGH CHANCES OF RECURRENCE OF CANCER. ORAL CANCER IS OFTEN LINKED WITH OBESITY WHICH IS MAJOR RISK FACTORS IN OTHER CANCERS. APART FROM OBESITY, ORAL CANCER IS THOUGHT TO HAVE AN INVERSE RELATION WITH NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS PRESUMABLY BECAUSE CELL DEATH DECREASES IN THE FORMER CASE AND INCREASES IN THE LATTER. ANCIENT MIND-BODY TECHNIQUES SUCH AS YOGA HAVE NOT BEEN ADEQUATELY TESTED AS A TOOL TO SYNERGIZE THE CELLULAR EQUILIBRIUM PERTAINING TO THE TREATMENT OF ORAL CANCER. NERVE GROWTH FACTOR (NGF), TUMOR NECROSIS FACTOR-ALPHA (TNF-ALPHA), AND INTERLEUKIN-6 (IL-6) ARE AMONG THE EARLY EXPERIMENTAL CELLULAR BIOMARKERS THAT MAY BE USED TO PROBE THE MODULATION OF ORAL CANCER, OBESITY, AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS. YOGA HAS BEEN REPORTED TO INFLUENCE THESE MOLECULES IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS BUT WHETHER THEIR EXPRESSION CAN BE ALTERED IN PATIENTS OF ORAL CANCER BY YOGA INTERVENTION IS THE SUBJECT OF THIS RESEARCH BEING DISCUSSED IN THIS REVIEW ARTICLE. THEREFORE, THE PRESENT ARTICLE NOT ONLY REVIEWS THE CURRENT STATUS OF RESEARCH STUDIES IN ORAL CANCER, OBESITY, AND NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS BUT ALSO HOW THESE ARE LINKED TO EACH OTHER AND WHY THE INVESTIGATIONS OF THE PUTATIVE NGF PATHWAY, INVOLVING TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6, COULD PROVIDE USEFUL CLUES TO UNDERSTAND THE MOLECULAR EFFECTS BROUGHT ABOUT BY YOGA INTERVENTION IN SUCH PATIENTS.	2018	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
10  859  42 EFFECT OF YOGA PRACTICE ON LEVELS OF INFLAMMATORY MARKERS AFTER MODERATE AND STRENUOUS EXERCISE. BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA PRACTICE AND EXERCISE CHALLENGE ON TUMOUR NECROSIS FACTOR ALPHA (TNF-ALPHA), INTERLEUKIN-6 (IL-6) LEVELS AND LIPID PROFILE. MATERIALS AND METHODS: TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN SUBJECTS PARTICIPATED IN THE STUDY. ONE HUNDRED AND NINE VOLUNTEERS (51 MALES AND 58 FEMALES) IN THE AGE GROUP OF 20 TO 60 YEARS, WHO PRACTICED YOGA REGULARLY FOR OVER FIVE YEARS FOR A PERIOD OF ONE HOUR DAILY, PERFORMED A BOUT OF MODERATE EXERCISE AND A BOUT OF STRENUOUS EXERCISE AS PER STANDARDIZED SHUTTLE WALK TEST PROTOCOL. ANTHROPOMETRICALLY MATCHED, AGE MATCHED AND GENDER MATCHED SUBJECTS, WHO DID NOT PRACTICE YOGA (NON-YOGA GROUP) WERE CHOSEN AS CONTROLS (NON-YOGA, N=109). THE NON-YOGA GROUP ALSO PERFORMED SIMILAR EXERCISES. THE BLOOD SAMPLES OF BOTH THE GROUPS WERE COLLECTED BEFORE AND AFTER THE EXERCISES. TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 WAS ANALYSED BEFORE AND AFTER THE EXERCISE BY SANDWICH ELISA (ENZYME LINKED IMMUNOSORBENT ASSAY). RESULTS: RESTING PLASMA TNF-ALPHA CONCENTRATION WAS SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN NON-YOGA GROUP WHEN COMPARED TO YOGA GROUP (P<0.05). THERE WAS AN INCREASE IN TNF-ALPHA LEVELS IN BOTH THE GROUPS IN RESPONSE TO STRENUOUS EXERCISE. THERE WAS NO GENDER DIFFERENCE IN TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS BEFORE AND AFTER EXERCISE IN YOGA AND NON-YOGA GROUPS. CONCLUSION: REGULAR PRACTICE OF YOGA LOWERS BASAL TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS. IT ALSO REDUCES THE EXTENT OF INCREASE OF TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 TO A PHYSICAL CHALLENGE OF MODERATE EXERCISE AND STRENUOUS EXERCISE. THERE IS NO SIGNIFICANT GENDER DIFFERENCE IN THE TNF-ALPHA AND IL-6 LEVELS. REGULAR PRACTICE OF YOGA CAN PROTECT THE INDIVIDUAL AGAINST INFLAMMATORY DISEASES BY FAVOURABLY ALTERING PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINE LEVELS.	2015	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
11 1266  20 FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND BRAIN FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION IN AGING YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS. NUMEROUS STUDIES HAVE DOCUMENTED THE NORMAL AGE-RELATED DECLINE OF NEURAL STRUCTURE, FUNCTION, AND COGNITIVE PERFORMANCE. PRELIMINARY EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT MEDITATION MAY REDUCE DECLINE IN SPECIFIC COGNITIVE DOMAINS AND IN BRAIN STRUCTURE. HERE WE EXTENDED THIS RESEARCH BY INVESTIGATING THE RELATION BETWEEN AGE AND FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND RESTING STATE BRAIN FUNCTIONAL NETWORK ARCHITECTURE USING GRAPH THEORY, IN MIDDLE-AGED YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTITIONERS, AND MATCHED CONTROLS. FLUID INTELLIGENCE DECLINED SLOWER IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND MEDITATORS COMBINED THAN IN CONTROLS. RESTING STATE FUNCTIONAL NETWORKS OF YOGA PRACTITIONERS AND MEDITATORS COMBINED WERE MORE INTEGRATED AND MORE RESILIENT TO DAMAGE THAN THOSE OF CONTROLS. FURTHERMORE, MINDFULNESS WAS POSITIVELY CORRELATED WITH FLUID INTELLIGENCE, RESILIENCE, AND GLOBAL NETWORK EFFICIENCY. THESE FINDINGS REVEAL THE POSSIBILITY TO INCREASE RESILIENCE AND TO SLOW THE DECLINE OF FLUID INTELLIGENCE AND BRAIN FUNCTIONAL ARCHITECTURE AND SUGGEST THAT MINDFULNESS PLAYS A MECHANISTIC ROLE IN THIS PRESERVATION.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
12  835  33 EFFECT OF YOGA ON PAIN, BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR, AND SEROTONIN IN PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN. BACKGROUND. SEROTONIN AND BRAIN-DERIVED NEUROTROPHIC FACTOR (BDNF) ARE KNOWN TO BE MODULATORS OF NOCICEPTION. HOWEVER, PAIN-RELATED CONNECTION BETWEEN YOGA AND THOSE NEUROMODULATORS HAS NOT BEEN INVESTIGATED. THEREFORE, WE AIMED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON PAIN, BDNF, AND SEROTONIN. METHODS. PREMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN PRACTICED YOGA THREE TIMES A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS. AT BASELINE AND AFTER 12 WEEKS, BACK PAIN INTENSITY WAS MEASURED USING VISUAL ANALOGUE SCALE (VAS), AND SERUM BDNF AND SEROTONIN LEVELS WERE EVALUATED. ADDITIONALLY, BACK FLEXIBILITY AND LEVEL OF DEPRESSION WERE ASSESSED. RESULTS. AFTER 12-WEEK YOGA, VAS DECREASED IN THE YOGA GROUP (P < 0.001), WHEREAS IT INCREASED (P < 0.05) IN THE CONTROL GROUP. BACK FLEXIBILITY WAS IMPROVED IN THE YOGA GROUP (P < 0.01). SERUM BDNF INCREASED IN THE YOGA GROUP (P < 0.01), WHEREAS IT TENDED TO DECREASE IN THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.05). SERUM SEROTONIN MAINTAINED IN THE YOGA GROUP, WHILE IT REDUCED (P < 0.01) IN THE CONTROL GROUP. THE DEPRESSION LEVEL MAINTAINED IN THE YOGA GROUP, WHEREAS IT TENDED TO INCREASE IN THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.07). CONCLUSIONS. WE PROPOSE THAT BDNF MAY BE ONE OF THE KEY FACTORS MEDIATING BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
13 1149  38 ENHANCEMENT OF CANCER STEM CELL SUSCEPTIBILITY TO CONVENTIONAL TREATMENTS THROUGH COMPLEMENTARY YOGA THERAPY: POSSIBLE CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR MECHANISMS. CANCER STEM CELLS (CSCS) ARE STEM-LIKE TUMOR POPULATIONS THAT ARE REPORTED TO CONTRIBUTE TOWARDS TUMOR GROWTH, MAINTENANCE AND RECURRENCE AFTER THERAPY. HYPOXIA INCREASES CSC FRACTION AND PROMOTES ACQUISITION OF A STEM-CELL-LIKE STATE. CANCER STEM CELLS ARE CRITICALLY DEPENDANT ON THE HYPOXIA-INDUCIBLE FACTOR-1 (HIF-1) FOR SURVIVAL, SELF-RENEWAL, TUMOR GROWTH AND MAINTENANCE OF THEIR UNDIFFERENTIATED PHENOTYPE. RECENT RESEARCHES SHOW THAT STAGE OF DIFFERENTIATION OF THE TUMOR CELLS IS PREDICTIVE OF THEIR SUSCEPTIBILITY TO NATURAL KILLER CELL (NK) CELL MEDIATED CYTOTOXICITY AND CANCER STEM CELLS ARE SIGNIFICANT TARGETS OF NK CELL CYTOTOXICITY. STUDIES ALSO SHOW THAT REVERSION OF TUMOR CELLS TO A LESS-DIFFERENTIATED PHENOTYPE CAN BE ACHIEVED BY BLOCKING NFKAPPAB. YOGA THERAPY (YOGIC LIFESTYLE MODIFICATIONS ENCOMPASSING PHYSICAL POSTURES, BREATHING PRACTICES, RELAXATION TECHNIQUES AND MEDITATIONS) IS KNOWN TO MODULATE NEURAL, ENDOCRINE AND IMMUNE FUNCTIONS AT THE CELLULAR LEVEL THROUGH INFLUENCING CELL CYCLE CONTROL, AGING, OXIDATIVE STRESS, APOPTOSIS AND SEVERAL PATHWAYS OF STRESS SIGNALING MOLECULES. YOGA THERAPY HAS ALSO BEEN SHOWN TO ENHANCE NATURAL KILLER CELL ACTIVITY AND MODULATE STRESS AND DNA DAMAGE IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTS RECEIVING RADIOTHERAPY. RECENT STUDY FOUND THAT BRIEF DAILY YOGIC MEDITATION MAY REVERSE THE PATTERN OF INCREASED NFKAPPAB-RELATED TRANSCRIPTION OF PRO-INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES IN LEUKOCYTES. THUS, YOGA THERAPY HAS THE POTENTIAL TO REDUCE CANCER STEM CELL SURVIVAL, SELF -RENEWAL AND TUMOR GROWTH BY MODIFYING THE TUMOR MICRO-ENVIRONMENT THROUGH VARIOUS MECHANISMS SUCH AS; 1) REDUCING HIF-1 ACTIVITY BY ENHANCED OXYGENATION, 2) PROMOTING NK CELL ACTIVITY DIRECTLY (OR INDIRECTLY THROUGH DOWN REGULATING NFKAPPAB EXPRESSION), THEREBY ENHANCING NK CELL MEDIATED CSC LYSIS, AND 3) BY MINIMIZING THE ABERRANT EXPRESSIONS OR ACTIVITIES OF VARIOUS HORMONES, CYTOKINES, CHEMOKINES AND TUMOR SIGNALING PATHWAYS. YOGA THERAPY MAY HAVE A SYNERGISTIC EFFECT WITH CONVENTIONAL MODALITIES OF TREATMENT IN PREVENTING CANCER PROGRESSION AND RECURRENCES.	2012	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
14 1675  29 OBESITY-RELATED INFLAMMATION & CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE: EFFICACY OF A YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION. OBESITY IS A GLOBAL HEALTH BURDEN AND ITS PREVALENCE IS INCREASING SUBSTANTIALLY DUE TO CHANGING LIFESTYLE. CHRONIC ADIPOSITY IS ASSOCIATED WITH METABOLIC IMBALANCE LEADING TO DYSLIPIDAEMIA, DIABETES, HYPERTENSION AND CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES (CVD). ADIPOSE TISSUE ACTS AS AN ENDOCRINE ORGAN RELEASING SEVERAL ADIPOCYTOKINES, AND IS ASSOCIATED WITH INCREASED LEVELS OF TISSUE AND CIRCULATING INFLAMMATORY BIOMOLECULES CAUSING VASCULAR INFLAMMATION AND ATHEROGENESIS. FURTHER, INFLAMMATION IS ALSO ASSOCIATED INDEPENDENTLY WITH OBESITY AS WELL AS CVD. KEEPING THIS IN VIEW, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT A REDUCTION IN WEIGHT MAY LEAD TO A DECREASE IN INFLAMMATION, RESULTING IN CVD RISK REDUCTION, AND BETTER MANAGEMENT OF PATIENTS WITH CVD. LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION HAS BEEN ENDORSED BY SEVERAL HEALTH AUTHORITIES IN PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASES. A YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION APPEARS TO BE A PROMISING OPTION IN REDUCING THE RISK FOR CVD AS WELL AS MANAGEMENT OF PATIENTS WITH CVD AS IT IS SIMPLE TO FOLLOW AND COST-EFFECTIVE WITH HIGH COMPLIANCE. THE EFFICACY OF SUCH LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION PROGRAMMES IS MULTIFACETED, AND IS ACHIEVED VIA REDUCTION IN WEIGHT, OBESITY-RELATED INFLAMMATION AND STRESS, THEREBY CULMINATING INTO RISK REDUCTION TOWARDS SEVERAL CHRONIC DISEASES INCLUDING CVD. IN THIS REVIEW, THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN OBESITY-RELATED INFLAMMATION AND CVD, AND THE ROLE OF YOGA-BASED LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION IN PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF CVD ARE DISCUSSED.	2014	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
15   39  45 A BRIEF BUT COMPREHENSIVE LIFESTYLE EDUCATION PROGRAM BASED ON YOGA REDUCES RISK FACTORS FOR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE AND DIABETES MELLITUS. OBJECTIVES: THE OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY WAS TO STUDY THE SHORT-TERM IMPACT OF A BRIEF LIFESTYLE INTERVENTION BASED ON YOGA ON SOME OF THE BIOCHEMICAL INDICATORS OF RISK FOR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE AND DIABETES MELLITUS. DESIGN: THE VARIABLES OF INTEREST WERE MEASURED AT THE BEGINNING (DAY 1) AND END (DAY 10) OF THE INTERVENTION USING A PRE-POST DESIGN. SETTING: THE STUDY IS THE RESULT OF OPERATIONAL RESEARCH CARRIED OUT IN OUR INTEGRAL HEALTH CLINIC (IHC). THE IHC IS AN OUTPATIENT FACILITY WHICH CONDUCTS 8-DAY LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION PROGRAMS BASED ON YOGA FOR PREVENTION AND MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC DISEASE. A NEW COURSE BEGINS EVERY ALTERNATE WEEK OF THE YEAR. SUBJECTS: THE STUDY IS BASED ON DATA COLLECTED ON 98 SUBJECTS (67 MALE, 31 FEMALE), AGES 20-74 YEARS, WHO ATTENDED ONE OF OUR PROGRAMS. THE SUBJECTS WERE A HETEROGENEOUS GROUP OF PATIENTS WITH HYPERTENSION, CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE, DIABETES MELLITUS, AND A VARIETY OF OTHER ILLNESSES. INTERVENTION: THE INTERVENTION CONSISTED OF ASANAS (POSTURES), PRANAYAMA (BREATHING EXERCISES), RELAXATION TECHNIQUES, GROUP SUPPORT, INDIVIDUALIZED ADVICE, LECTURES AND FILMS ON THE PHILOSOPHY OF YOGA AND THE PLACE OF YOGA IN DAILY LIFE, MEDITATION, STRESS MANAGEMENT, NUTRITION, AND KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE ILLNESS. OUTCOME MEASURES: THE OUTCOME MEASURES WERE FASTING PLASMA GLUCOSE AND SERUM LIPOPROTEIN PROFILE. THESE VARIABLES WERE DETERMINED IN FASTING BLOOD SAMPLES, TAKEN ON THE FIRST AND LAST DAY OF THE COURSE. RESULTS: FASTING PLASMA GLUCOSE, SERUM TOTAL CHOLESTEROL, LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN (LDL) CHOLESTEROL, VERY- LDL CHOLESTEROL, THE RATIO OF TOTAL CHOLESTEROL TO HIGH DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN (HDL) CHOLESTEROL, AND TOTAL TRIGLYCERIDES WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER, AND HDL CHOLESTEROL SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER, ON THE LAST DAY OF THE COURSE COMPARED TO THE FIRST DAY OF THE COURSE. THE CHANGES WERE MORE MARKED IN SUBJECTS WITH HYPERGLYCEMIA OR HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIA. CONCLUSIONS: THE OBSERVATIONS SUGGEST THAT A SHORT LIFESTYLE MODIFICATION AND STRESS MANAGEMENT EDUCATION PROGRAM LEADS TO FAVORABLE METABOLIC EFFECTS WITHIN A PERIOD OF 9 DAYS.	2005	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
16 1690  55 OXIDATIVE STRESS INDUCED DAMAGE TO PATERNAL GENOME AND IMPACT OF MEDITATION AND YOGA - CAN IT REDUCE INCIDENCE OF CHILDHOOD CANCER? BACKGROUND: SPERM DNA DAMAGE IS UNDERLYING AETIOLOGY OF POOR IMPLANTATION AND PREGNANCY RATES BUT ALSO AFFECTS HEALTH OF OFFSPRING AND MAY ALSO RESULT IN DENOVO MUTATIONS IN GERM LINE AND POST FERTILIZATION. THIS MAY RESULT IN COMPLEX DISEASES, POLYGENIC DISORDERS AND CHILDHOOD CANCERS. CHILDHOOD CANCER LIKE RETINOBLASTOMA (RB) IS MORE PREVALENT IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES AND THE INCIDENCE OF RB HAS INCREASED MORE THAN THREE FOLD IN INDIA IN THE LAST DECADE. RECENT STUDIES HAVE DOCUMENTED INCREASED INCIDENCE OF CANCERS IN CHILDREN BORN TO FATHERS WHO CONSUME ALCOHOL IN EXCESS AND TOBACCO OR WHO WERE CONCEIVED BY ASSISTED CONCEPTION. THE AETIOLOGY OF CHILDHOOD CANCER AND INCREASED DISEASE BURDEN IN THESE CHILDREN IS LIN KED TO OXIDATIVE STRESS (OS) AND OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE( ODD) IN SPERM OF THEIR FATHERS. THOUGH SEVERAL ANTIOXIDANTS ARE IN USE TO COMBAT OXIDATIVE STRESS, THE EFFECT OF MAJORITY OF THESE FORMULATIONS ON DNA IS NOT KNOWN. YOGA AND MEDITATION CAUSE SIGNIFICANT DECLINE IN OS AND ODD AND AID IN REGULATING OS LEVELS SUCH THAT REACTIVE OXYGEN SPEUES MEDITATED SIGNAL TRANSDUCTION, GENE EXPRESSION AND SEVERAL OTHER PHYSIOLOGICAL FUNCTIONS ARE NOT DISRUPTED. THUS, THIS STUDY AIMED TO ANALYZE SPERM ODD AS A POSSIBLE ETIOLOGICAL FACTOR IN CHILDHOOD CANCER AND ROLE OF SIMPLE LIFE STYLE INTERVENTIONS LIKE YOGA AND MEDITATION IN SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASING SEMINAL OXIDATIVE STRESS AND OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE AND THEREBY DECREASING INCIDENCE OF CHILDHOOD CANCERS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A TOTAL OF 131 FATHERS OF CHILDREN WITH RB (NON-FAMILIAL SPORADIC HERITABLE) AND 50 CONTROLS (FATHERS OF HEALTHY CHILDREN) WERE RECRUITED AT A TERTIARY CENTER IN INDIA. SPERM PARAMETERS AS PER WHO 2010 GUIDELINES AND REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES (ROS), DNA FRAGMENTATION INDEX (DFI), 8-HYDROXY-2'-DEOXY GUANOSINE (8-OHDG) AND TELOMERE LENGTH WERE ESTIMATED AT DAY 0, AND AFTER 3 AND 6 MONTHS OF INTERVENTION. WE ALSO EXAMINED THE COMPLIANCE WITH YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTICE AND SMOKING STATUS AT EACH FOLLOW-UP. RESULTS: THE SEMINAL MEAN ROS LEVELS (P<0.05), SPERM DFI (P<0.001), 8-OHDG (P<0.01) LEVELS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER IN FATHERS OF CHILDREN WITH RB, AS COMPARED TO CONTROLS AND THE RELATIVE MEAN TELOMERE LENGTH IN THE SPERM WAS SHORTER. LEVELS OF ROS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED IN TOBACCO USERS (P<0.05) AS WELL AS IN ALCOHOLICS (P<0.05) AFTER INTERVENTION. DFI REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY (P<0.05) AFTER 6 MONTHS OF YOGA AND MEDITATION PRACTICE IN ALL GROUPS. THE LEVELS OF OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE MARKER 8-OHDG WERE REDUCED SIGNIFICANTLY AFTER 3 MONTHS (P<0.05) AND 6 MONTHS (P<0.05) OF PRACTICE. CONCLUSIONS: OUR RESULTS SUGGEST THAT OS AND ODD DNA MAY CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDHOOD CANCER. THIS MAY BE DUE TO ACCUMULATION OF OXIDIZED MUTAGENIC BASE 8OHDG , AND ELEVATED MDA LEVELS WHICH RESULTS IN MDA DIMERS WHICH ARE ALSO MUTAGENIC, ABERRANT METHYLATION PATTERN, ALTERED GENE EXPRESSION WHICH AFFECT CELL PROLIFERATION AND SURVIVAL THROUGH ACTIVATION OF TRANSCRIPTION FACTORS. INCREASED MT DNA MUTATIONS AND ABERRANT REPAIR OF MT AND NUCLEAR DNA DUE TO HIGHLY TRUNCATRED DNA REPAIR MECHANISMS ALL CONTRIBUTE TO SPERM GENOME HYPERMUTABILITY AND PERSISTANT OXIDATIVE DNA DAMAGE. OXIDATIVE STRESS IS ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH GENOME WIDE HYPOMETHYLATION, TELOMERE SHORTENING AND MITOCHONDRIAL DYSFUNCTION LEADING TO GENOME HYPERMUTABILITY AND INSTABILITY. TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE, THIS IS THE FIRST STUDY TO REPORT DECLINE IN OS AND ODD AND IMPROVEMENT IN SPERM DNA INTEGRITY FOLLOWING ADOPTION OF MEDITATION AND YOGA BASED LIFE STYLE MODIFICATION.THIS MAY REDUCE DISEASE BURDEN IN NEXT GENERATION AND REDUCE INCIDENCE OF CHILDHOOD CANCERS.	2016	

17 1089  27 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM, GAMMA-AMINOBUTYRIC-ACID, AND ALLOSTASIS IN EPILEPSY, DEPRESSION, AND POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER. A THEORY IS PROPOSED TO EXPLAIN THE BENEFITS OF YOGA PRACTICES IN DIVERSE, FREQUENTLY COMORBID MEDICAL CONDITIONS BASED ON THE CONCEPT THAT YOGA PRACTICES REDUCE ALLOSTATIC LOAD IN STRESS RESPONSE SYSTEMS SUCH THAT OPTIMAL HOMEOSTASIS IS RESTORED. IT IS HYPOTHESIZED THAT STRESS INDUCES (1) IMBALANCE OF THE AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM (ANS) WITH DECREASED PARASYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM (PNS) AND INCREASED SYMPATHETIC NERVOUS SYSTEM (SNS) ACTIVITY, (2) UNDERACTIVITY OF THE GAMMA AMINO-BUTYRIC ACID (GABA) SYSTEM, THE PRIMARY INHIBITORY NEUROTRANSMITTER SYSTEM, AND (3) INCREASED ALLOSTATIC LOAD. IT IS FURTHER HYPOTHESIZED THAT YOGA-BASED PRACTICES (4) CORRECT UNDERACTIVITY OF THE PNS AND GABA SYSTEMS IN PART THROUGH STIMULATION OF THE VAGUS NERVES, THE MAIN PERIPHERAL PATHWAY OF THE PNS, AND (5) REDUCE ALLOSTATIC LOAD. DEPRESSION, EPILEPSY, POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER (PTSD), AND CHRONIC PAIN EXEMPLIFY MEDICAL CONDITIONS THAT ARE EXACERBATED BY STRESS, HAVE LOW HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV) AND LOW GABAERGIC ACTIVITY, RESPOND TO PHARMACOLOGIC AGENTS THAT INCREASE ACTIVITY OF THE GABA SYSTEM, AND SHOW SYMPTOM IMPROVEMENT IN RESPONSE TO YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS. THE OBSERVATION THAT TREATMENT RESISTANT CASES OF EPILEPSY AND DEPRESSION RESPOND TO VAGAL NERVE STIMULATION CORROBORATES THE NEED TO CORRECT PNS UNDERACTIVITY AS PART OF A SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT PLAN IN SOME CASES. ACCORDING TO THE PROPOSED THEORY, THE DECREASED PNS AND GABAERGIC ACTIVITY THAT UNDERLIES STRESS-RELATED DISORDERS CAN BE CORRECTED BY YOGA PRACTICES RESULTING IN AMELIORATION OF DISEASE SYMPTOMS. THIS HAS FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS FOR THE INTEGRATION OF YOGA-BASED PRACTICES IN THE TREATMENT OF A BROAD ARRAY OF DISORDERS EXACERBATED BY STRESS.	2012	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
18 1641  28 MONITORING THE NEURAL ACTIVITY OF THE STATE OF MENTAL SILENCE WHILE PRACTICING SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION. OBJECTIVE: TO IDENTIFY THE NEURAL CORRELATES OF THE STATE OF MENTAL SILENCE AS EXPERIENCED THROUGH SAHAJA YOGA MEDITATION. DESIGN: NINETEEN EXPERIENCED MEDITATORS UNDERWENT FUNCTIONAL MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING DURING THREE SHORT CONSECUTIVE MEDITATION PERIODS, CONTRASTED WITH A CONTROL RELAXATION CONDITION. RESULTS: RELATIVE TO BASELINE, AT THE BEGINNING OF THE MEDITATION SESSIONS THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE OF ACTIVATION IN BILATERAL INFERIOR FRONTAL AND TEMPORAL REGIONS. ACTIVATION BECAME PROGRESSIVELY MORE REDUCED WITH DEEPER MEDITATION STAGES AND IN THE LAST MEDITATION SESSION IT BECAME LOCALIZED TO THE RIGHT INFERIOR FRONTAL CORTEX/ RIGHT INSULA AND RIGHT MIDDLE/SUPERIOR TEMPORAL CORTEX. FURTHERMORE, RIGHT INFERIOR FRONTAL ACTIVATION WAS DIRECTLY ASSOCIATED WITH THE SUBJECTIVE DEPTH OF THE MENTAL SILENCE EXPERIENCE. CONCLUSIONS: MEDITATORS APPEAR TO PASS THROUGH AN INITIAL INTENSE NEURAL SELF-CONTROL PROCESS NECESSARY TO SILENCE THEIR MIND. AFTER THIS THEY EXPERIENCE RELATIVELY REDUCED BRAIN ACTIVATION CONCOMITANT WITH THE DEEPENING OF THE STATE OF MENTAL SILENCE OVER RIGHT INFERIOR FRONTAL CORTEX, PROBABLY REFLECTING AN EFFORTLESS PROCESS OF ATTENTIONAL CONTEMPLATION ASSOCIATED WITH THIS STATE.	2015	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
19  758  34 EFFECT OF SLOW BREATHING ON AUTONOMIC TONE & BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: SLOW BREATHING INCREASES PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY AND BAROREFLEX SENSITIVITY (BRS) IN HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS, ALSO SIMILARLY OBSERVED IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. PRANAYAMA WHICH IS AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF YOGA WHEN PRACTICED AT A SLOW PACE WAS AT A RESPIRATORY FREQUENCY OF AROUND 0.1 HZ (6 BREATHS/MIN). THEREFORE, IT WAS HYPOTHESIZED THAT YOGA PRACTITIONERS MIGHT HAVE ADAPTED TO SLOW BREATHING. THIS STUDY WAS AIMED TO DECIPHER THE ROLE OF YOGA ON CARDIOVASCULAR VARIABILITY DURING SLOW BREATHING (0.1 HZ) IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. METHODS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY WAS UNDERTAKEN IN NAIVE-TO-YOGA INDIVIDUALS (N=40) AND YOGA PRACTITIONERS (N=40) WITH AN AVERAGE AGE OF 31.08 +/- 7.31 AND 29.93 +/- 7.57 YR, RESPECTIVELY. THE ANALYSIS OF HEART RATE VARIABILITY, BLOOD PRESSURE VARIABILITY (BPV) AND BRS DURING SPONTANEOUS AND SLOW BREATHING WAS COMPARED BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS. RESULTS: DURING SLOW BREATHING, THE HEART RATE (P<0.01) WAS LOWER, RESPIRATORY RATE INTERVAL (P<0.05) AND PNN50 PER CENT (P=0.01) WERE HIGHER, MEAN SYSTOLIC BP (SBP) (P<0.05) AND SDSD (STANDARD DEVIATION OF SUCCESSIVE BEAT TO BEAT SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE DIFFERENCES) (P<0.01) OF SBP VARIABILITY WERE LOWER WITH SEQUENCE BRS (P<0.001) AND ALPHA LOW FREQUENCY (P<0.01) AND ALPHA HIGH FREQUENCY (P<0.001) OF SPECTRAL BRS WERE HIGHER IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSIONS: THE PRESENT STUDY INDICATED HIGHER PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY AND BRS WITH LOWER SBP VARIABILITY AT REST AND DURING SLOW BREATHING IN YOGA PRACTITIONERS COMPARED TO NAIVE GROUP. FINDINGS INDICATE THAT THE SHORT-TERM PRACTICE OF SLOW BREATHING COMPLEMENTS THE AUGMENTED PARASYMPATHETIC ACTIVITY AND BRS IN THE YOGA GROUP.	2020	
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               
20  435  37 CARDIOPULMONARY AND METABOLIC EFFECTS OF YOGA IN HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS. BACKGROUND: YOGA THE SPIRITUAL UNION OF MIND WITH THE DIVINE INTELLIGENCE OF THE UNIVERSE AIMS TO LIBERATE A HUMAN BEING FROM CONFLICTS OF BODY-MIND DUALITY. BENEFICIAL CARDIOVASCULAR AND PULMONARY EFFECTS OF YOGA ARE IN PAR WITH AEROBIC EXERCISE, EVEN AMOUNTING TO REPLACE THE EXERCISE MODEL. WE CONDUCTED AN INTERVENTIONAL STUDY IN HEALTHY VOLUNTEERS, TO ANALYZE THE IMPACT OF SHORT-TERM YOGA TRAINING ON CARDIOVASCULAR, PULMONARY, AUTONOMIC FUNCTION TESTS, LIPID PROFILE, AND THYROID FUNCTION TESTS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A SAMPLE OF FIFTY NEW RECRUITS ATTENDING THE DISTRICT YOGA CENTER WAS SUBJECT TO 75 MIN YOGA PRACTICE A DAY FOR 41 DAYS. BASAL VALUES OF CARDIOVASCULAR, PULMONARY, AUTONOMIC FUNCTION TESTS, LIPID PROFILE, AND THYROID FUNCTION TESTS WERE RECORDED BEFORE YOGA TRAINING AND WERE REASSESSED FOR POSTYOGA CHANGES AFTER 41 DAYS. RESULTS: AFTER YOGA PRACTICE THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN THE RESTING HEART RATE, SYSTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, DIASTOLIC BLOOD PRESSURE, AND MEAN BLOOD PRESSURE OF THE PARTICIPANTS. EFFECTS ON AUTONOMIC FUNCTION TESTS WERE VARIABLE AND INCONCLUSIVE. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN FORCED VITAL CAPACITY, FORCED EXPIRATORY VOLUME IN 1 S, AND PEAK EXPIRATORY FLOW RATE AFTER YOGA. A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN BODY MASS INDEX WAS OBSERVED. EFFECTS ON METABOLIC PARAMETERS WERE PROMISING WITH A SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION IN FASTING BLOOD SUGAR LEVEL, SERUM TOTAL CHOLESTEROL, SERUM TRIGLYCERIDES SERUM LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN LEVELS, AND SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN HIGH-DENSITY LIPOPROTEIN. THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGE IN THYROID FUNCTION TESTS AFTER YOGA. CONCLUSION: SHORT-TERM YOGA PRACTICE HAS NO EFFECT ON THYROID FUNCTIONS. YOGA PRACTICE WAS FOUND BENEFICIAL IN MAINTAINING PHYSIOLOGICAL MILIEU PERTAINING TO CARDIOVASCULAR AND OTHER METABOLIC PARAMETERS.	2017