Title:Psychoneuroimmunology - Psyche and Autoimmunity
Volume: 18
Issue: 29
Author(s): Tjalf Ziemssen
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Psychoneuroimmunology, autonomic nervous system, HPA axis, stress, brain activity, sleep, body temperature, immunity, autoimmune disease, CNS.
Abstract: Psychoneuroimmunology is a relatively young field of research that investigates interactions between central nervous and immune
system. The brain modulates the immune system by the endocrine and autonomic nervous system. Vice versa, the immune system
modulates brain activity including sleep and body temperature. Based on a close functional and anatomical link, the immune and nervous
systems act in a highly reciprocal manner. From fever to stress, the influence of one system on the other has evolved in an intricate manner
to help sense danger and to mount an appropriate adaptive response. Over recent decades, reasonable evidence has emerged that these
brain-to-immune interactions are highly modulated by psychological factors which influence immunity and autoimmune disease. For
several diseases, the relevance of psychoneuroimmunological findings has already been demonstrated.
