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Updated: Jun 4, 2025
Telomere Length and Telomerase Activity; A Yin and Yang of Cell Senescence
Published on: May 22, 2013
Sudarshan Kriya Yoga Promotes Telomere Elongation: A Pilot Study
Background:
Telomere length has been identified as a marker for biological aging and stressful body states. Mind-body interventions for stress reduction such as meditation, yoga, and pranayama have been previously tested to evaluate their efficacy in restricting telomere shortening.
Primary Study Objective:
In this study, the effect of Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY) is investigated for its influence on telomere length.
Methods:
Isolating the genomic DNA from the blood, relative telomere length was found using a quantitative PCR method for the SKY intervention group and a control group. Telomere maintenance gene expression was assessed from a microarray gene expression dataset.
Setting:
Sri Sri Institute for Advanced Research, Bangalore.
Participants:
Employees, working at a corporate organization were the participants of this study. 11 individuals were enrolled in the intervention group while 5 were enrolled in the control group.
Intervention:
The integrated yoga-meditation practice, Sudarshan Kriya Yoga (SKY).
Primary Outcome Measures:
The relative telomere length and the expression of telomere maintenance genes from the genomic DNA isolated from the participants' blood samples.
Results:
Telomere length after SKY increased significantly compared to the baseline. However, in the controls, the corresponding change was insignificant. The telomere maintenance gene expression analysis reveals an intervention response conducive to telomere length extension at the molecular level.
Conclusion:
The extension of telomere length after SKY underscores its efficacy in stress reduction and improved health-span.
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