Table 1.
Cytokines in healthy individuals
| Reference | Participants | Study design | Interventions | Controls | Follow up | Outcomes | Findings |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oken et al. (2010) [21] | 31 Dementia caregivers | RCT (pilot) | MM (N = 10) 6 weeks + common first-week session |
Education (N = 11) 6 weeks + common first-week session Respite (N = 10) 7 weeks respite care |
No | IL-6, TNF-α, HS-CRP, salivary cortisol | There were no pre- and post-intervention differences in the levels of cytokines between the different intervention conditions (p > 0.05). |
| Barrett et al. (2012) [33] | 149 ≥ 50y | RCT | MBSR (N = 51) 8 weeks |
Exercise (N = 47) 8 weeks Observational Control (N = 51) |
No | IL-8, neutrophil count, viral nucleic acid nasal secretion | Compared to the control group, IL-8 levels in the MBSR group were slightly higher in nasal wash collected during acute respiratory infection (p = 0.02). |
| Creswell et al. (2012) [35] | 40 ≥ 55y | RCT (small) | MBSR (N = 20) 8 weeks |
Wait-list Control (N = 20) |
No | IL-6, CRP, pro-inflammatory gene expression | No significant treatment condition × time interaction for log-transformed IL-6 was observed (p = 0.57). |
| Gallegos et al. (2013) [36] | 200 Community-dwelling ≥ 65y |
RCT | MBSR (N = 100) 8 weeks |
Wait-list Control (N = 100) |
24 weeks | IL-6, IGF-1, IgM and IgG antibody response | There were no differences in the levels of IL-6 at post-MBSR intervention follow-ups. No associations were found between MBSR activities and IL-6 levels. |
| Rosenkranz et al. (2013) [37] | 49 Community volunteers | RCT | MBSR (N = 33) 8 weeks |
Health Enhancement Program (N = 16) 8 weeks |
4 months | blister fluid TNF-α and IL-8, salivary cortisol | There were no pre- and post-intervention differences in the levels of TNF-α and IL-8 between the MBSR group and the active control intervention. Increased practice in the MBSR group was associated with a decrease in TNF-α levels, whereas the active control group tended to show the opposite relationship. |
| Hayney et al. (2014) [34] | 149 ≥ 50y | RCT | MBSR (N = 51) 8 weeks |
Exercise (N = 47) 8 weeks Observational Control (N = 51) |
No | IFN-γ, IL-10 Serum influenza antibody, nasal IgA | There were no significant differences in the production of IFN-γ and IL-10 in the influenza-vaccinated individuals between the different intervention conditions. |
Abbreviations: HS-CRP high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, IFN-γ interferon gamma, IgA immunoglobulin A, IGF-1 insulin-like growth factor 1, IgG immunoglobulin G, IgM immunoglobulin M, IL interleukin, MBSR mindfulness-based stress reduction, MM Mindfulness Meditation intervention, Open open trial with a pre-post trial, RCT randomized controlled trial, TNF-α tumour necrosis factor alpha, y years