Abstract
BackgroundYoga is increasingly popular worldwide with several physical and mental benefits, but the underlying neurobiology remains unclear. Whereas many studies have focused on pure meditational aspects, the triad of yoga includes meditation, postures, and breathing. We conducted a cross-sectional study comparing experienced yoga practitioners to yoga-naive healthy subjects using a multiparametric 2 × 2 design with simultaneous positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance (PET/MR) imaging.Methods18F-FDG PET, morphometric and diffusion tensor imaging, resting state fMRI, and MR spectroscopy were acquired in 10 experienced (4.8 ± 2.3 years of regular yoga experience) yoga practitioners and 15 matched controls in rest and after a single practice (yoga practice and physical exercise, respectively).ResultsIn rest, decreased regional glucose metabolism in the medial temporal cortex, striatum, and brainstem was observed in yoga practitioners compared to controls (p < 0.0001), with a significant inverse correlation of resting parahippocampal and brainstem metabolism with years of regular yoga practice (ρ < − 0.63, p < 0.05). A single yoga practice resulted in significant hypermetabolism in the cerebellum (p < 0.0001). None of the MR measures differed, both at rest and after intervention.ConclusionsExperienced yoga practitioners show regional long-term decreases in glucose metabolism related to years of practice. To elucidate a potential causality, a prospective longitudinal study in yoga-naive individuals is warranted.
Highlights
Yoga is increasingly popular worldwide with several physical and mental benefits, but the underlying neurobiology remains unclear
On a molecular level, increased thalamic gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels were observed using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in experienced yoga subjects immediately after a yoga practice [11]. In line with the latter, a leading hypothesis of the underlying neurobiological mechanism of yoga is that breathing exercises and baroreflex-promoting poses induce a shift in the parasympathetic nervous system and brain GABA levels through the vagal nerve [12, 13]
To reduce heterogeneity in the current study, we focused on the effects of a widely practiced yoga style, ashtanga, that consists of a standard sequence of fixed poses, specific breathing, and meditative activity, implying low inter-subject variability in intervention performance, and compared that to a welldefined control group
Summary
Yoga is increasingly popular worldwide with several physical and mental benefits, but the underlying neurobiology remains unclear. A limited number of neuroimaging studies van Aalst et al EJNMMI Research (2020) 10:50 have probed the effect of the yoga triad on the structural, functional, or molecular level using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), or single-photon emission tomography (SPECT). On a molecular level, increased thalamic gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) levels were observed using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in experienced yoga subjects immediately after a yoga practice [11]. In line with the latter, a leading hypothesis of the underlying neurobiological mechanism of yoga is that breathing exercises and baroreflex-promoting poses induce a shift in the parasympathetic nervous system and brain GABA levels through the vagal nerve [12, 13]
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