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Abstract Title:

Epigenetic clock analysis in long-term meditators.

Abstract Source:

Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2017 Nov ;85:210-214. Epub 2017 Aug 31. PMID: 28889075

Abstract Author(s):

Raphaëlle Chaix, Maria Jesús Alvarez-López, Maud Fagny, Laure Lemee, Béatrice Regnault, Richard J Davidson, Antoine Lutz, Perla Kaliman

Article Affiliation:

Raphaëlle Chaix

Abstract:

In this paper, we examined whether meditation practice influences the epigenetic clock, a strong and reproducible biomarker of biological aging, which is accelerated by cumulative lifetime stress and with age-related chronic diseases. Using the Illumina 450K array platform, we analyzed the DNA methylome from blood cells of long-term meditators and meditation-naïve controls to estimate their Intrinsic Epigenetic Age Acceleration (IEAA), using Horvath's calculator. IEAA was similar in both groups. However, controls showed a different IEAA trajectory with aging than meditators: older controls (age≥52) had significantly higher IEAAs compared with younger controls (age<52), while meditators were protected from this epigenetic aging effect. Notably, in the meditation group, we found a significant negative correlation between IEAA and the number of years of regular meditation practice. From our results, we hypothesize that the cumulative effects of a regular meditation practice may, in the long-term, help to slow the epigenetic clock and could represent a useful preventive strategy for age-related chronic diseases. Longitudinal randomized controlled trials in larger cohorts are warranted to confirm and further characterize these findings.

Study Type : Human Study
Additional Links
Therapeutic Actions : Meditation : CK(1288) : AC(160)

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