{"id":47091,"date":"2015-08-17T21:57:12","date_gmt":"2015-08-18T03:57:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=47091"},"modified":"2015-09-01T05:52:32","modified_gmt":"2015-09-01T12:52:32","slug":"meditation-and-brian-plasticity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2015\/08\/17\/meditation-and-brian-plasticity\/","title":{"rendered":"Meditation and Brain Plasticity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Dr. Ruwan M Jayatunge<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

The human mind is a complex phenomenon built on the physical scaffolding of the brain. (Nunez, 2010; Bassett & Gazzaniga, 2011). The human brain is not a static organ. It has ability to change and adapt as a result of experience. Experience alters the brain (Kolb, Gibb, & Robinson, 2003). This phenomena is known as Brain plasticity or neural plasticity or cortical remapping.<\/p>\n

Neuroplasticity can be defined as the ability of the nervous system to respond to intrinsic or extrinsic stimuli by reorganizing its structure, function and connections (Cramer et al., 2011). Siegel (2010) describes Neuroplasticity as the capacity for creating new neural connections and growing neurons in response to experience.<\/p>\n

Plasticity is an innate property of the human brain and represents evolution\u2019s invention to enable the nervous system to escape the restrictions of its own genome and thus adapting to environmental pressures, physiologic changes, and experiences (Pascual-Leone et al., 2005). The entire central nervous system (CNS) is highly plastic and it changes continually throughout life.<\/p>\n

The human brain can create new neural pathways and create novel memories. Neuronal connections and cortical maps are continuously remodeled by experience (Johansson, 2000). The brain has the capacity to undergo activity-dependent functional and morphological remodeling via mechanisms of plasticity (Bruel-Jungerman, Davis &Laroche, 2007). \u00a0There are two major types of neural plasticity: functional plasticity and structural plasticity. The human brain has the capacity for both.<\/p>\n

Brian Plasticity: Historical Background<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Italian psychiatrist Ernesto Lugaro can be regarded as responsible for introducing the term\u00a0plasticity\u00a0into neurosciences as early as 1906 (Berlucchi, 2002).\u00a0 However before this time the American philosopher and psychologist William James hypothesized that brain plasticity existed. William James in The Principles of Psychology (1890) stated that nervous tissue endowed with an extraordinary degree of plasticity.<\/p>\n

The Italian psychiatrist Eugenio Tanzi (1856\u20131934) hypothesized formation of new connections between cortical neurons. Tanzi postulated that practice and experience promote neuronal growth and shorten the minute spatial gaps between functionally associated neurons, thus facilitating their interactions (Berlucchi, 2002).<\/p>\n

In his book, The Organization of Behavior\u201d the Canadian neuro-psychologist Donald O. Hebb (1904 \u2013 1985) introduced the concepts of synaptic\u00a0plasticity\u00a0and cell assemblies to provide a theory of the neurophysiological basis of behaviour (Brown, 2006).\u00a0 The synaptic plasticity theory of learning was rehabilitated in the late 1940s when Konorski and particularly Hebb argued successfully that there was no better alternative way to think about the mercurial nature of the brain by experience and practice (Berlucchi&, Buchtel, 2009).<\/p>\n

The Australian neurophysiologist Sir John Eccles (1903-1997) focused on\u00a0plasticity\u00a0at central synapses in the hippocampus, cerebellum, and neocortex.\u00a0His endeavors extended from the\u00a0plasticity\u00a0associated with CNS lesions to the mechanisms responsible for the most complex and as yet mysterious products of neuronal\u00a0plasticity, the substrates underlying learning and memory (\u00a0Wolpaw& Carp, 2006).<\/p>\n

Meditation and <\/u>Neuroplasticity<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Meditation is a conscious mental process. Meditation in a clinical capacity can be defined as a form of mental training that aims to improve an individual\u2019s core psychological capacities, such as attentional and emotional self-regulation (Tang,\u00a0\u00a0 Holzel, & Posner, 2015). Meditation comprises a series of practices mainly developed in eastern cultures aimed at accepting emotions and enhancing attentional processes (Sperduti, Martinelli & Piolino, 2012). Furthermore meditation is a complex neurocognitive task that is often associated with alterations in body physiology and psychological measures (Newberg et al., 2010).<\/p>\n

Meditation\u00a0has lately received considerable interest from cognitive neuroscience (Braboszcz et al., 2013). Studies suggest that daily\u00a0meditation\u00a0leads to long lasting attentional and\u00a0neuronal plasticity. (Braboszcz et al., 2013). \u00a0Research has also shown that short courses can provide some degree of neuronal improvement as well. Various brain regions have been reported to be anatomically different between meditators and controls (Luders et al., 2012). According to Venkatesh and colleagues (1997) long term practice of meditation appears to produce structural as well as intensity changes in phenomenological experiences of consciousness.<\/p>\n

Changes<\/u><\/strong>\u00a0<\/u>in Cerebral Blood Flow<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Functional magnetic resonance imaging\u00a0has detected changes\u00a0in cerebral blood flow during meditation. Wang and team (2011) found that the frontal regions, anterior cingulate, limbic system and parietal lobes were affected during meditation and that there were different patterns of cerebral blood flow between the two meditation states ie- focused-based” practice and a “breath-based” practice. Meditation increases regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in the prefrontal cortex (Deepeshwar et al., 2015).\u00a0 \u00a0As reported by Newberg et al., \u00a0(2010) \u00a0cerebral blood flow of long-term meditators was significantly higher compared to non-meditators in the prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, thalamus, putamen, caudate, and midbrain.<\/p>\n

Mindfulness Mediation<\/u><\/p>\n

Mindfulness\u00a0meditation\u00a0is a set of attention-based, regulatory, and self-inquiry training regimes (Allen et al., 2012). It is also referred to as “insight meditation” or “Vipassana practice,” is playing an increasingly large role in defining how meditation can contribute to therapeutic growth and personal development (Lehrer,\u00a0\u00a0 Woolfolk &\u00a0\u00a0 Sime, 2007). \u00a0According to Kabat-Zinn (1994) Mindfulness is paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgementally<\/em>. In the last few decades,\u00a0mindfulness\u00a0meditation\u00a0has gained prominence as an adjunctive psychotherapeutic technique (Wolkin, 2015).<\/p>\n

Mindfulness has been shown to lead to significant changes in the brain (Widdett, 2014).\u00a0 As indicated by H\u00f6lzel et al., (2010) mindfulness practice is associated with changes in gray matter concentration in brain regions involved in learning and memory processes, emotion regulation, self-referential processing, and perspective taking.<\/p>\n

Loving-kindness Meditation <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Loving-kindness meditation has been used for centuries in the Buddhist tradition to develop love and transform anger into compassion (Carson et al., 2005). Loving-kindness meditation is a practice designed to enhance feelings of kindness and compassion for self and others (Kearney et al., 2013).These Kindness-based contemplative practices enhance prosocial emotions, social cognitive skills, and wellbeing. According to Leung et al., \u00a0(2013) experience in LKM may influence brain structures associated with affective regulation and they further found increased gray matter volume in the right angular and posterior parahippocampal gyri in loving-kindness meditators.<\/p>\n

Empathy and Brain Changes <\/u><\/p>\n

Empathy is about both sharing and understanding the emotional state of others in relation to oneself. It is an affective dimension that involves a shared affective experience and also a cognitive dimension that includes the ability to understand or have some degree of conscious awareness that the affective experience is evoked by another (Mascaro et al., 2015).<\/p>\n

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) indicates that when a person emphasizes brain regions such as insula, medial\/anterior cingulate cortex become active (Lamm, Meltzoff & Decety, 2010). Klimecki and colleagues (2013) observed that, compared with a memory control group, compassion training elicited activity in a neural network including the medial orbitofrontal cortex, putamen, pallidum, and ventral tegmental area\u2014brain regions previously associated with positive affect and affiliation.<\/p>\n

Vedananupassana Meditation \u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Mindfulness of sensation or contemplation of sensation is known as Vedananupassana or Body scan meditation. Vedananupassana meditation consists of minutely observing feelings such as aversion and desire as well as pleasant and unpleasant ones. It is a form of Vipassana meditation that is geared to enhance mind\/body awareness (interoceptive awareness). According to Mirams , Poliakoff , Brown and\u00a0 Lloyd\u00a0 (2013) brief body-scan meditation practice improves somatosensory perceptual decision making. Fox and colleagues (2012) reported that\u00a0 \u00a0long-term meditators provide more accurate introspective reports than novices.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Mediation Induced Morphological Changes of the Brain<\/strong><\/u><\/p>\n

The human brain is composed of approximately 100 billion neurons. The brain has many specialized cells, harboring sets of both common, widely distributed, as well as specialized and discretely localized proteins (Sj\u00f6stedtet al., 2015).\u00a0 Experience produces multiple, dissociable changes in the brain including increases in dendritic length, increases (or decreases) in spine density, synapse formation, increased glial activity, and altered metabolic activity (Kolb & Whishaw ,1998). Psychopathology can cause detrimental changes in the brain. For instance in PTSD brain areas such as medial prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and amygdale undergo changes. Brain imaging studies show that PTSD patients have increased amygdala reactivity during fear acquisition (Bremner et al., 2008).<\/p>\n

Healthy brain structural changes have been reported following meditation practice. Meditation is associated with neuroplastic\u00a0changes. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET) reports of meditators indicate such changes. \u00a0Kang and team (2013) indicate that meditators, compared with controls, showed significantly greater cortical thickness in the anterior regions of the brain, located in frontal and temporal areas, including the medial prefrontal cortex, superior frontal cortex, temporal pole and the middle and interior temporal cortices.<\/p>\n

Human Cerebral Cortex<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The human cerebral cortex is a highly folded sheet of neurons the thickness of which varies between 1 and 4.5 mm, with an overall average of approximately 2.5 mm (1\u20133).The thickness of the cortex is of great interest in both normal development as well as a wide variety of neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders. Accurate and automated methods for measuring the thickness of human cerebral cortex could provide powerful tools for diagnosing and studying a variety of neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders (Fischl & Dale, 2000).<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/u><\/strong>The Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC)<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) also known as Area 25, is a region that is located towards the front of the corpus callosum, in the medial frontal lobe. It is a part of the brain\u2019s limbic system. The ACC is important in decision making and emotional regulation. In addition the ACC plays an important role in attentional control (Crottaz-Herbette & Menon, 2006).\u00a0 The anterior cingulate cortex has an important role in focused problem-solving, error recognition, and adaptive response to changing conditions ( Allman et al., 2001).\u00a0 Meditation increases the ACC \u00a0activity (Tang et al., 2010) and white matter change (Tang et al., 2012), and improves self-regulation.<\/p>\n

Neocortex <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The neocortex is the most developed of the cerebral tissues (Dorland, 2012) and serves as the center of higher mental functions for humans. The neocortex contains\u00a0 100 billion cells and\u00a0 \u00a0enables the most complex mental activities. Evolution of the neocortex in mammals is considered to be a key evolution that enabled higher cognitive function (Lui , Hansen & Kriegstein ,2011). \u00a0The neocortex is a particularly relevant region for plasticity because it performs sensory, motor, and cognitive tasks with strong learning components (Feldman, 2009).<\/p>\n

Brain Stem<\/u><\/p>\n

The brainstem is the region of the brain that connects the cerebrum with the spinal cord. It consists of the midbrain, medulla oblongata, and the pons. The brainstem has integrative functions especially in awareness, and consciousness.\u00a0 Using magnetic resonance imaging Vestergaard-Poulsen and team (2009) observed higher gray matter density in lower brain stem regions of experienced meditators compared with age-matched non-meditators.<\/p>\n

Insula<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The human insula is hidden in the depth of the cerebral hemisphere by the overlying frontal and temporal opercula, and consists of three cytoarchitectonically distinct regions: the\u00a0anterior\u00a0agranular area, posterior granular area, and the transitional dysgranular zone; each has distinct histochemical staining patterns and specific connectivity (Cauda et al., 2011). The insula is\u00a0\u00a0 responsible for human ability to empathize with others According to Tang and colleagues (2015) short-term meditation increases blood flow in anterior cingulate cortex and insula.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/u>Corpus Callosum<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The corpus callosum is involved in communication between brain hemispheres and facilitates interhemispheric communication. The corpus callosum is the largest white matter structure in the human brain, connecting cortical regions of both hemispheres ( Van der Knaap & Van der Ham ,2011). As indicated by Kurth et al., \u00a0(2015) an increased fractional anisotropy and greater thickness in the anterior parts of the corpus callosum in meditation practitioners compared with control subjects .<\/p>\n

Hippocampus<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

The hippocampus is a small organ located within the brain’s medial temporal lobe. The hippocampus plays a crucial role in memory (King et al., 2004) both in \u00a0\u00a0memory encoding and retrieval (Naber et al., 2000). \u00a0The hippocampus atrophies with chronic stress and aging. The human hippocampus shows structural differences between meditators and non-meditators and larger hippocampal dimensions found in meditation practitioners (Luders , \u00a0Thompson \u00a0& \u00a0Kurth \u00a02015). A study done by Desbordes and team (2012) indicated that Mindful-Attention Training may promote neuroplasticity in the hippocampus in healthy subjects who engage in regular meditation practice over the course of 8 weeks.<\/p>\n

Amygdala<\/u><\/strong><\/em>\u00a0<\/u><\/p>\n

The amygdala is an almond-shaped group of nuclei at the heart of the telencephalon \u2014 it has been associated with a range of cognitive functions, including emotion, learning, memory, attention and perception (Baxter & Murray, 2002).\u00a0 Taren,Creswell and \u00a0Gianaros \u00a0(2013)\u00a0hypothesized that higher levels of dispositional mindfulness would be associated with decreased grey matter volume in the amgydala.<\/p>\n

Concluding Thoughts<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

In the last few decades the neuroimaging research has shown evidence confirming the effects of meditation and its impact upon brain plasticity. Meditation enhances cortical remapping and brain functions. \u00a0Neuroimaging studies have shown the increased regional cerebral blood flow during meditation. \u00a0Further studies have indicated neural pathways and synapse changes among mediators. These results indicate that meditation is not merely an altered state of consciousness or a merely a state of relaxation. Meditation helps to uplift mental health and causes healthy changes in the brain.\u00a0 Therefore mediation is one of the unique modes to improve mental health.<\/p>\n

Acknowledgements<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Joseph Barnby – Researcher at MAPrc (Alfre Hospital) – Melbourne, Australia<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • Professor Y.Y. Tang – Institute of Neuroinformatics and Lab for Body and Mind, Dalian University of Technology<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

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      Dr. Ruwan M Jayatunge The human mind is a complex phenomenon built on the physical scaffolding of the brain. (Nunez, 2010; Bassett & Gazzaniga, 2011). The human brain is not a static organ. It has ability to change and adapt as a result of experience. Experience alters the brain (Kolb, Gibb, & Robinson, 2003). This […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[68],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47091","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dr-ruwan-m-jayatunge-m-d"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47091","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47091"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47091\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47091"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47091"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47091"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}