Greater widespread functional connectivity of the caudate in older adults who practice kripalu yoga and vipassana meditation than in controls.
Tim Gard, Maxime Taquet, Rohan Dixit, Britta K. Hölzel, Bradford C Dickerson, Sara W. Lazar
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2015 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00137 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Experienced yoga practitioners, experienced meditators, and matched controls |
| Interventions | Yoga Meditation |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Aging Basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuits Caudate Degree centrality Functional connectivity Graph theory Mindfulness meditation Yoga |
| Key findings | Yoga and meditation practitioners have significantly greater degree centrality in the caudate and stronger functional connectivity within basal ganglia cortico-thalamic feedback loops than non-practitioners. |
Abstract
There has been a growing interest in understanding how contemplative practices affect brain functional organization. However, most studies have restricted their exploration to predefined networks. Furthermore, scientific comparisons of different contemplative traditions are largely lacking. Here we explored differences in whole brain resting state functional connectivity between experienced yoga practitioners, experienced meditators, and matched controls. Analyses were repeated in an independent sample of experienced meditators and matched controls. Analyses utilizing Network-Based Statistics (Zalesky et al., 2010) revealed difference components for yoga practitioners > controls and meditators > controls in which the right caudate was a central node. Follow up analyses revealed that yoga practitioners and meditators had significantly greater degree centrality in the caudate than controls. This greater degree centrality was not driven by single connections but by greater connectivity between the caudate and numerous brain regions. Findings of greater caudate connectivity in meditators than in controls was replicated in an independent dataset. These findings suggest that yoga and meditation practitioners have stronger functional connectivity within basal ganglia cortico-thalamic feedback loops than non-practitioners. Although we could not provide evidence for its mechanistic role, this greater connectivity might be related to the often reported effects of meditation and yoga on behavioral flexibility, mental health, and well-being.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construct Validity of the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire in Meditating and Nonmeditating Samples Experienced meditators and nonmeditating comparison groups | 2008 | Cross-sectional study | |
| Neural Correlates of Dispositional Mindfulness During Affect Labeling Adult participants | 2007 | Observational cross-sectional | n = 27 |
| Assessing mindfulness in children and adolescents: Development and validation of the Child and Adolescent Mindfulness Measure (CAMM). School-aged children and adolescents | 2011 | Cross-sectional validation study | n = 1,413 |
| Mindfulness and self-compassion as predictors of psychological wellbeing in long-term meditators and matched nonmeditators Experienced meditators and demographically matched nonmeditators | 2012 | Cross-sectional study | n = 152 |
| Mechanisms of Action in the Inverse Relationship Between Mindfulness and Psychological Distress Undergraduates | 2008 | Cross-sectional, correlational |
Citations in the library
Cited by 22
- Mindfulness meditation increases default mode, salience, and central executive network connectivity Scientific Reports August 2, 2022
- The Neural Mechanisms of Meditative Practices: Novel Approaches for Healthy Aging Current behavioral neuroscience reports October 18, 2016
- Mindfulness Meditation Is Related to Long-Lasting Changes in Hippocampal Functional Topology during Resting State: A Magnetoencephalography Study Neural Plasticity December 18, 2018
- What Has Neuroimaging Taught Us on the Neurobiology of Yoga? A Review Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience July 8, 2020
- Greater Anteroposterior Default Mode Network Functional Connectivity in Long-Term Elderly Yoga Practitioners Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience July 2, 2019
and 17 more in the library
Cites 26
- Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Neuroreport November 7, 2005
- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2012
- Neural correlates of attentional expertise in long-term meditation practitioners Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences June 28, 2007
- An empirical study of the mechanisms of mindfulness in a mindfulness‐based stress reduction program Journal of Clinical Psychology March 6, 2009
and 21 more in the library