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Updated: May 11, 2026

Increased Recovery Time and Decreased LPS Administration to Study the Vagus Nerve Stimulation Mechanisms in Limited Inflammatory Responses
Published on: March 29, 2017
Vagal nerve activity as a moderator of brain-immune relationships
Hideki Ohira1, Masahiro Matsunaga, Takahiro Osumi
1Department of Psychology, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya 464-8601, Japan. ohira@lit.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
We investigated whether vagal tone, as assessed by heart rate variability (HRV), moderates the neural correlates of immune and physiological responses to acute stress. Participants with low and high baseline HRV underwent a reversal learning task as an acute stressor. Natural killer cells, norepinephrine, and adrenocorticotropic hormone in peripheral blood changed with acute stress in the high HRV group only. Activity in the prefrontal cortex and striatum correlated with the immune and physiological indices in the high HRV group. High vagal tone may reflect more flexible top-down brain regulation of immune and physiological activity.
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