Neural and molecular changes during a mind-body reconceptualization, meditation, and open label placebo healing intervention

Abstract

Mind-body interventions offer promising avenues for improving physical and mental health, yet the comprehensive biological effects of increasingly popular mind-body retreat interventions remain poorly understood. The neural and molecular effects of a 7-day retreat intervention combining meditation, reconceptualization, and open-label placebo healing rituals are investigated in an observational study on 20 healthy human participants randomly selected from 561 retreat participants. BOLD fMRI functional connectivity during rest and meditation and whole plasma proteomics, metabolomics, exosome-specific miRNA transcriptomics, and neurite growth and real-time metabolism cellular assays are compared pre- and post-intervention. Neural and molecular changes during a mind-body reconceptualization, meditation, and open label placebo healing intervention | Communications Biology Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles Neural and molecular changes during a mind-body reconceptualization, meditation, and open label placebo healing intervention * Published:06 November 2025# Neural and molecular changes during a mind-body reconceptualization, meditation, and open label placebo healing intervention * [Alex Jinich-Diamant](#auth-Alex-Jinich_Diamant-Aff1-Aff2)[1](#Aff1),[2](#Aff2), * [Laura Case](#auth-Laura-Case-Aff1)[ORCID:orcid.org/0000-0003-3730-2451](https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3730-2451)[1](#Aff1), * [Andrei V. Chernov](#auth-Andrei_V_-Chernov-Aff1-Aff3)[1](#Aff1),[3](#Aff3), * [Natalia Esther Amkie Stahl](#auth-Natalia_Esther-Amkie_Stahl-Aff1)[1](#Aff1), * [Leonardo Christov-Moore](#auth-Leonardo-Christov_Moore-Aff6)[6](#Aff6), * [Nicco Reggente](#auth-Nicco-Reggente-Aff6)[ORCID:orcid.org/0000-0002-0511-9962](https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0511-9962)[6](#Aff6), * [Tobias Moeller-Bertram](#auth-Tobias-Moeller_Bertram-Aff5)[5](#Aff5)& * …* [Hemal H. Patel](#auth-Hemal_H_-Patel-Aff1-Aff3)[ORCID:orcid.org/0000-0001-6722-9625](https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6722-9625)[1](#Aff1),[3](#Aff3)Show authors [*Communications Biology*](https://doi.org/commsbio)**volume8**, Article number:1525(2025)[Cite this article](#citeas)