Letter to Editor
Yoga and Meditation: The Holistic Way to Decrease Incidence of Childhood Cancer
Surabhi Gautam, Manoj Kumar and Rima Dada*
Laboratory for Molecular Reproduction & Genetics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
*Corresponding author: Rima Dada, Laboratory for Molecular Reproduction & Genetics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Published: 06 Jan, 2018
Cite this article as: Gautam S, Kumar M, Dada R. Yoga
and Meditation: The Holistic Way to
Decrease Incidence of Childhood
Cancer. Clin Oncol. 2018; 3: 1404.
Letter to Editor
Dear Editor,
Population-based Cancer Registries in India for the period of 2012-2014 have reported around
0.7 - 4.4% proportion of neoplasm in children (0-14 years) relative to cancers in all age groups.
According to 2012-2014 consolidated report of Hospital-based Cancer Registries, specific types of
cancers in childhood have been reported under the broad headings of leukemias, lymphomas &
reticuloendothelial neoplasms, central nervous system & miscellaneous intracranial & intraspinal
neoplasm, sympathetic nervous system tumours, retinoblastoma etc. with similar proportion
among boys and girls [1]. Survival and health trajectory of an offspring depends on the integrity
and stability of genomic information it receives as a zygote. Childhood cancers are assumed to be
multifactorial and an increasing incidence is reported in children born to older fathers. Increase in
childhood morbidity has been reported in children born to fathers with oxidative DNA damage in
sperm genome [2]. The complex interplay of genetic and environmental factors, replication errors
and transmission of genetic material in a multistage sequence, paternal preconception health and
poor lifestyle factors contribute to accumulation of denovo germline mutations and epi-mutations
and childhood cancers. Advanced paternal age and associated accumulation of replication associated
errors, lifestyle-related factors (smoking, tobacco consumption, psychological stress, sedentary
lifestyle, intake of nutritionally depleted processed food and hazardous occupational exposures)
cause Oxidative Stress (OS) in the male germ line which may be common underlying aetiology
of infertility, recurrent implantation failures, recurrent spontaneous abortions, preterm births,
congenital malformations, complex neuropsychiatric disorders, obesity, metabolic syndrome,
childhood cancers and imprinting disorders. Sperm is highly susceptible to oxidative damage
due to presence of high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids, incompletely protaminated and
poorly compacted nuclear DNA, limited anti-oxidants in the scant cytoplasm and a deficient DNA
damage detection(lower PARP levels) and repair mechanism (lower OGG1 levels). Hence, sperm
accumulates mutations at a much higher rate than the oocyte and is dependent on the oocyte to
remove oxidative DNA lesion which accumulate due to various exogenous/ endogenous factors
and advanced paternal age. This is further compromised by advanced maternal age where the aging
oocytes with an inefficient repair mechanism results in persistence of sperm oxidative DNA lesions.
The zygote genome thus harbors higher mutations in turn results in increased risk of childhood
cancers. These alterations result in molecular ageing due to disruption of sperm DNA integrity,
reduced testicular functions, rapid telomeric attrition, mitochondrial dysfunction, pre oxidative
damage to sperm plasma membrane microsatellite instability, aberrant methylation patterns
(hypomethylation of oncogenes & hypermethylation of tumor suppressor genes), unmasking of
repetitive elements, dysregulation in levels of mRNAs/transcripts and results in OS and chemical
induced carcinogenesis as well as associated epigenetic disorders to the offspring [3].
Recent advances in technology, lack of space and time, food loaded with insecticides/pesticides
and a highly stressful lifestyle has led to the disturbances in natural bio-chemical environment in
the brain which affects primary gonads via Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal (HPG) axis [4]. The
imbalances in mind, body and gonads leading to poor sperm structure and function can be reflected
by supra-physiological ROS levels and lowering of levels of anti-oxidants. Highly stressful lifestyle,
depression, anxiety reaching high levels is associated with raised cortisol and lower total antioxidant
capacity and thus oxidative stress. Hence maintenance of this redox balance is of prime importance
for the regulation of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal (HPG) axis. In this age of super specialization
we proposed that a simple lifestyle intervention including yoga and meditation will not only impact
a particular system but impact the body as a whole, resulting in improvement of physical, mental,
reproductive health. We propose that Yoga and Meditation based Lifestyle Intervention (YMLI)
may actually aid in reducing the sequel of OS and testicular ageing
and improving the health of offspring. YMLIs are an adjunct therapy
to modern medicine as they maintain the equilibrium between
ROS production and anti-oxidant scavenging activities, unlike the
indiscriminate use of anti-oxidants which may result in reductive
stress and impair various physiological processes.
Studies from our laboratory have reported that YMLI can reduce
OS induced damage to paternal genome, improves sperm DNA
integrity, regularize levels of sperm transcripts and hence can reduce
the incidences of childhood cancers like retinoblastoma [5]. OS
induced genome wide global hypomethylation and over expression
of oncogenes, repetitive elements unmasking, imprinted genes,
hypermethylation& reduced expression of tumor suppressor genes,
apoptosis, cell cycle regulatory, cell differentiation and oxidative
stress damages both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA damage.
Mitochondrial DNA damage precedes nuclear DNA damage which
results in excessive free radical production. We have documented a
decline in seminal ROS levels within 10 days practice of yoga and
meditation and gradual reduction of DNA damage and improvement
in sperm DNA integrity over a period of 6 months. YMLI normalizes
the levels of sperm transcripts, increased expression of genes involved
in DNA repair, cell cycle checkpoint control and causes down
regulation of pro-inflammatory genes [6-8]. YMLI aids in maintenance
of genomic stability and chromosomal integrity, reducing the rate of
cellular ageing by maintaining telomere length and upregulation of
telomerase activity [9,10]. OS results from endogenous and exogenous
factors. Majority of these factors are associated with unhealthy social
and lifestyle habits and thus can be modified. YMLI is a technique
and a science of inner well-being which impacts the body, mind as a
whole and results in promoting health and improving quality of life.
Reduction in OS, improvement in sperm DNA integrity may reduce
genetic and epigenetic aberrations in the genome and thus reduce the
risk of developing cancer in the offspring.
References
- NCRP - Consolidated Report of Population Based Cancer Registries and Hospital Based Cancer Registries 2012-2014, National Cancer Registry Programme (Indian Council of Medical Research), Bengaluru, 2016.
- Aitken R J, De Iuliis G N, McLachlan R I. Biological and clinical significance of DNA damage in the male germ line. Int J Androl. 2009;32(1): 46-56.
- Bisht S, Faiq M, Tolahunase M, Dada R. Oxidative stress and male infertility. Nat Rev Urol. 2017;14(8):470-85.
- Arora S, Bhattacharjee J. Modulation of immune responses in stress by Yoga. Int J Yoga. 2008;1(2):45-55.
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- Dada T, Faiq M A, Mohanty K, Mittal D, Bhat M, Yadav R K, et al. Effect of Yoga and Meditation Based Intervention on Intraocular Pressure, Quality of Life, Oxidative Stress and Gene Expression Pattern in Primary Open Angle Glaucoma: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 2016;57(12).
- Dhawan V, Kumar M, Dada R. Effect of Sperm Molecular Factors, Oxidative Damage and Transcripts in Childhood Disorders. J Child Dev Disord. 2017,3:6.
- Kumar SB, Gautam S, Tolahunase M, Chawla B, Yadav RK, et al. Improvement in Sperm DNA Quality Following Simple Life Style Intervention: A Study in Fathers of Children with Non-Familial Sporadic Heritable Retinoblastoma. J Clin Case Rep. 2015;5:509.
- Tolahunase M, Sagar R, Dada R. Impact of Yoga and Meditation on Cellular Aging in Apparently Healthy Individuals: A Prospective, OpenLabel Single-Arm Exploratory Study. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity. 2017;2017:7928981.
- Tolahunase M, Sagar R, Faiq M, Dada R. Yoga- and meditation-based lifestyle intervention increases neuroplasticity and reduces severity of major depressive disorder: A randomized controlled trial. Indian J.Sci.Res. 2017;18(2):09-13.