5 ms·

The brain's reward circuitry regulates immunity

136 points by danielmorozoff 10y ago

kofejnik 10y ago
paywalled
- Karunamon 10y ago
  Scihub: http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4157 http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4157
achille 10y ago
That's a pretty neat study. Essentially they show how the placebo effect can have such a big impact on health. Getting medicine treatment -> Rewards the brain -> Leads to increased production of antibodies -> Patient is healthier.
- xjay 10y ago
  Perhaps it's just part of an ancient social ritual--where the sub-system recognizes the doctor type (basically a checkpoint in the system) as an authoritative verification of usefulness to society. My imagination is running wild at the moment..
  - mrob 10y ago
    Or alternatively, the presence of social support means you're not in any immediate danger of starvation so you can afford to assign some more energy to running the immune system.
  - pjc50 10y ago
    What does a doctor type have to do with "verification of usefulness to society"?
metasean 10y ago
Paywalled - my brain's reward system feels like it was kicked hard - so if I get sick next week, can I blame my poor immunity and susequent sickness on nature.com's paywall?
- msane 10y ago
  That seems like a comment for reddit.
- worthpaying 10y ago
  Worth paying then hey!
danielmorozoff 10y ago
For those interested in the actual paper as opposed to the news writeup. Nature: http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.cul.columbia.edu/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.cul.columbia.edu/nm/journal/v2... Scihub: http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4133 http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4133
erdevs 10y ago
This is an amazing study and a great step forward in our understanding of biology and previously mysterious mind-body connections. Besides helping to explain at least part of the classic Placebo Effect, it also opens the door to a great deal of potential both for making existing treatments more efficacious (by supplementing them with reward system intervention) and for new treatments (utilizing the brain reward system to influence immunological response). The study seems very well-constructed and powerful. They demonstrate that direct stimulation of reward neuralchemistry produces specific and varied immune system responses, and also discover the pathways for this effect. They demonstrate causality well and also show that if the specific pathway they identify (the sympathetic nervous system connecting to lymphatic cells) is blocked, the increased immunological response no longer follows the neural reward stimulation. This seems really, really well done and it's high-impact science. Upon reading the study, I wondered what might have created this mind-body link, in evolutionary terms. It turns out the authors considered this question as well. From the SciHub piece on this paper: "Many activities that are known to stimulate reward-system signaling in the VTA, including engaging in sex, socializing and traveling, markedly increase exposure to pathogens. Therefore, it can be envisioned, as the authors suggest, that coupling the reward center to the immune system would offer a selective advantage, which helps to explain the intertwining of these two systems from an evolutionary perspective." Really cool stuff!
- xjay 10y ago
  So there's basically a social selection sub-system running in the background. Perhaps this sub-system extends to people (unknowingly) "outing" themselves to other instances of the sub-system--should they become something akin to free radicals, or a negative factor to it.
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]
apathy 10y ago
The actual paper is at http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html I was going to see if it could be torn apart but 1) Shen-Orr is a very thorough, un-full-of-shit researcher, 2) I like how they used CyTOF in a novel capacity here, and 3) depressed people do tend to get sick more often. That said, some of the largest divergences between mice and primates are in the brain, so it would be wise to exercise caution when generalizing these findings to humans. If you need the full paper and have misplaced your subscription credentials, I hope you would not resort to plugging the DOI into http://sci-hub.bz http://sci-hub.bz like so: http://sci-hub.bz/10.1038/nm.4133 http://sci-hub.bz/10.1038/nm.4133 Because that would be wrong. Publishers need hot tubs in their 3rd bathrooms, just like Deans and coaches do. The methods section is included in that version (papers without methods are like dehydrated water). Read it for yourself, don't listen to some blowhard on the Interwebs (i.e., me).
- RA_Fisher 10y ago
  Curious, because I don't see it offered. Did they publish the statistical code and (anonymized) data?
  - apathy 10y ago
    The code for Citrus is on GitHub (see online methods). The data was deposited into Cytobank, so if it isn't already available, you could ask them to release it (Cytobank is sort of like GEO for flow/CyTOF data). It's pretty transparent.
    - apathy 10y ago
      ps. Mouse data doesn't need to be anonymized :-)
      - Fordrus 10y ago
        Mouse HIPAA wants to have words with you, apathy! What about mouse privacy?! Despicable, that's what it all is, despicable!!! :D ;) :)
danielvf 10y ago
This effect has been observed for thousands of years - an ancient proverb says “A joyful heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”
- Lxr 10y ago
  The novel part is causality - obviously sick people are less happy but this demonstrates cause and effect.
  - danielvf 10y ago
    That causualty is the whole point of the old proverb. Being happy makes you healthier, being sad makes you sicker.
swalsh 10y ago
Wish i could read the actual paper. I've been in a really low spot for almost a year. The startup I was working at went under, and I took a job I hate. Every morning I'm sick to my stomach thinking about stepping into that office, and all day long I find it increasingly hard to actually get work done. I have no motivation. As my depression has gotten worse, I've become constantly sick. At first I thought it was because my son was in daycare, but my wife seems to avoid most of it. Just the other day my son got foot and mouth disease, something common in children but rare in adults. Of course my wife is fine, but I somehow get it.
- retox 10y ago
  I thought it had been conclusively shown that stress reduces the ability of our immune system to fight off disease. Start looking for another job, take some time off or spend more time on a hobby if you're able. Easier said that done most of the time but you owe it to yourself and those close to you. Hope you pull through. Here's a link I could grab before the edit window closed; http://www.apa.org/research/action/immune.aspx http://www.apa.org/research/action/immune.aspx
- dredmorbius 10y ago
  Sci-Hub. Link above.
- BatFastard 10y ago
  I hear you. I have been thru the same cycle. The one thing that got me thru it was my kids. Let loving, caring, raising them and your family be your own true motivation. It will always be there. Also find a project you love, see if a hacker space around you is active. So many amazing things going on in the world. As for jobs, well I tend to be underemployed. Its hard to find companies with vision who are not fun by fools. The upside to that is it leaves me more time to work at my passion!

136 points by danielmorozoff 10y ago

kofejnik 10y ago

paywalled

Karunamon 10y ago
Scihub: http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4157 http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4157

achille 10y ago

That's a pretty neat study. Essentially they show how the placebo effect can have such a big impact on health. Getting medicine treatment -> Rewards the brain -> Leads to increased production of antibodies -> Patient is healthier.

xjay 10y ago
Perhaps it's just part of an ancient social ritual--where the sub-system recognizes the doctor type (basically a checkpoint in the system) as an authoritative verification of usefulness to society. My imagination is running wild at the moment..
- mrob 10y ago
  Or alternatively, the presence of social support means you're not in any immediate danger of starvation so you can afford to assign some more energy to running the immune system.
- pjc50 10y ago
  What does a doctor type have to do with "verification of usefulness to society"?

metasean 10y ago

Paywalled - my brain's reward system feels like it was kicked hard - so if I get sick next week, can I blame my poor immunity and susequent sickness on nature.com's paywall?

msane 10y ago
That seems like a comment for reddit.
worthpaying 10y ago
Worth paying then hey!

danielmorozoff 10y ago

For those interested in the actual paper as opposed to the news writeup. Nature: http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.cul.columbia.edu/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.cul.columbia.edu/nm/journal/v2... Scihub: http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4133 http://sci-hub.cc/10.1038/nm.4133

erdevs 10y ago

This is an amazing study and a great step forward in our understanding of biology and previously mysterious mind-body connections. Besides helping to explain at least part of the classic Placebo Effect, it also opens the door to a great deal of potential both for making existing treatments more efficacious (by supplementing them with reward system intervention) and for new treatments (utilizing the brain reward system to influence immunological response). The study seems very well-constructed and powerful. They demonstrate that direct stimulation of reward neuralchemistry produces specific and varied immune system responses, and also discover the pathways for this effect. They demonstrate causality well and also show that if the specific pathway they identify (the sympathetic nervous system connecting to lymphatic cells) is blocked, the increased immunological response no longer follows the neural reward stimulation. This seems really, really well done and it's high-impact science. Upon reading the study, I wondered what might have created this mind-body link, in evolutionary terms. It turns out the authors considered this question as well. From the SciHub piece on this paper: "Many activities that are known to stimulate reward-system signaling in the VTA, including engaging in sex, socializing and traveling, markedly increase exposure to pathogens. Therefore, it can be envisioned, as the authors suggest, that coupling the reward center to the immune system would offer a selective advantage, which helps to explain the intertwining of these two systems from an evolutionary perspective." Really cool stuff!

xjay 10y ago
So there's basically a social selection sub-system running in the background. Perhaps this sub-system extends to people (unknowingly) "outing" themselves to other instances of the sub-system--should they become something akin to free radicals, or a negative factor to it.
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]

apathy 10y ago

The actual paper is at http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html http://www.nature.com/nm/journal/v22/n8/full/nm.4133.html I was going to see if it could be torn apart but 1) Shen-Orr is a very thorough, un-full-of-shit researcher, 2) I like how they used CyTOF in a novel capacity here, and 3) depressed people do tend to get sick more often. That said, some of the largest divergences between mice and primates are in the brain, so it would be wise to exercise caution when generalizing these findings to humans. If you need the full paper and have misplaced your subscription credentials, I hope you would not resort to plugging the DOI into http://sci-hub.bz http://sci-hub.bz like so: http://sci-hub.bz/10.1038/nm.4133 http://sci-hub.bz/10.1038/nm.4133 Because that would be wrong. Publishers need hot tubs in their 3rd bathrooms, just like Deans and coaches do. The methods section is included in that version (papers without methods are like dehydrated water). Read it for yourself, don't listen to some blowhard on the Interwebs (i.e., me).

RA_Fisher 10y ago
Curious, because I don't see it offered. Did they publish the statistical code and (anonymized) data?
- apathy 10y ago
  The code for Citrus is on GitHub (see online methods). The data was deposited into Cytobank, so if it isn't already available, you could ask them to release it (Cytobank is sort of like GEO for flow/CyTOF data). It's pretty transparent.
  - apathy 10y ago
    ps. Mouse data doesn't need to be anonymized :-)
    - Fordrus 10y ago
      Mouse HIPAA wants to have words with you, apathy! What about mouse privacy?! Despicable, that's what it all is, despicable!!! :D ;) :)

danielvf 10y ago

This effect has been observed for thousands of years - an ancient proverb says “A joyful heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.”

Lxr 10y ago
The novel part is causality - obviously sick people are less happy but this demonstrates cause and effect.
- danielvf 10y ago
  That causualty is the whole point of the old proverb. Being happy makes you healthier, being sad makes you sicker.

swalsh 10y ago

Wish i could read the actual paper. I've been in a really low spot for almost a year. The startup I was working at went under, and I took a job I hate. Every morning I'm sick to my stomach thinking about stepping into that office, and all day long I find it increasingly hard to actually get work done. I have no motivation. As my depression has gotten worse, I've become constantly sick. At first I thought it was because my son was in daycare, but my wife seems to avoid most of it. Just the other day my son got foot and mouth disease, something common in children but rare in adults. Of course my wife is fine, but I somehow get it.

retox 10y ago
I thought it had been conclusively shown that stress reduces the ability of our immune system to fight off disease. Start looking for another job, take some time off or spend more time on a hobby if you're able. Easier said that done most of the time but you owe it to yourself and those close to you. Hope you pull through. Here's a link I could grab before the edit window closed; http://www.apa.org/research/action/immune.aspx http://www.apa.org/research/action/immune.aspx
dredmorbius 10y ago
Sci-Hub. Link above.
BatFastard 10y ago
I hear you. I have been thru the same cycle. The one thing that got me thru it was my kids. Let loving, caring, raising them and your family be your own true motivation. It will always be there. Also find a project you love, see if a hacker space around you is active. So many amazing things going on in the world. As for jobs, well I tend to be underemployed. Its hard to find companies with vision who are not fun by fools. The upside to that is it leaves me more time to work at my passion!