Functional magnetic resonance imaging of hippocampal activation during silent mantra meditation.
Maria Engström, Johan Pihlsgård, Peter Lundberg, Birgitta Söderfeldt
The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine December 1, 2010 DOI: 10.1089/acm.2009.0706 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Moderately experienced meditators with less than 2 years of meditation practice according to the Kundalini yoga or Acem tradition |
| Intervention | silent mantra meditation |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | The most significant activation during silent mantra meditation was in the bilateral hippocampus/parahippocampal formations, with no activation in the anterior cingulate cortex and only small clusters in the prefrontal cortex. |
Abstract
The objective of the present study was to investigate whether moderately experienced meditators activate hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex during silent mantra meditation, as has been observed in earlier studies on subjects with several years of practice. Subjects with less than 2 years of meditation practice according to the Kundalini yoga or Acem tradition were examined by functional magnetic resonance imaging during silent mantra meditation, using an on-off block design. Whole-brain as well as region-of-interest analyses were performed. The most significant activation was found in the bilateral hippocampus/parahippocampal formations. Other areas with significant activation were the bilateral middle cingulate cortex and the bilateral precentral cortex. No activation in the anterior cingulate cortex was found, and only small activation clusters were observed in the prefrontal cortex. In conclusion, the main finding in this study was the significant activation in the hippocampi, which also has been correlated with meditation in several previous studies on very experienced meditators. We propose that the hippocampus is activated already after moderate meditation practice and also during different modes of meditation, including relaxation. The role of hippocampal activity during meditation should be further clarified in future studies, especially by investigating whether the meditation-correlated hippocampal activity is related to memory consolidation.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cited by 43
- The Meditative Mind: A Comprehensive Meta-Analysis of MRI Studies BioMed Research International 2015
- Experts bodies, experts minds: How physical and mental training shape the brain Frontiers in Human Neuroscience May 7, 2014
- Meditation-related activations are modulated by the practices needed to obtain it and by the expertise: an ALE meta-analysis study Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2013
- Meditation effects within the hippocampal complex revealed by voxel-based morphometry and cytoarchitectonic probabilistic mapping Frontiers in Psychology 2013
- BOLD signal and functional connectivity associated with loving kindness meditation Brain and Behavior February 12, 2014
and 38 more in the library
Cites 14
- Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology Science and Practice 2003
- Short-term meditation training improves attention and self-regulation Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences October 11, 2007
- Neural correlates of attentional expertise in long-term meditation practitioners Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences June 28, 2007
- Mindfulness meditation for the treatment of chronic low back pain in older adults: A randomized controlled pilot study ☆ Pain June 4, 2007
- Functional brain mapping of the relaxation response and meditation Neuroreport May 1, 2000
and 9 more in the library