Inflammation plays fundamental positive and negative physiological roles during life. However, unresolved chronic inflammation is associated with morbidities affecting a wide range of multiple systems. A growing body of research supports the benefit of integrative therapies in preventing and treating chronic inflammation; however, the exact biological pathways/processes through which they deliver their beneficial effects are not yet well-understood. We hypothesize that yoga catalyzes pro-resolution inflammatory processes during its practice. As part of an already completed randomized controlled trial, we aim to evaluate the physiological behavior of protective lipid mediators after an acute intervention of yoga-based stretching among healthy, yoga naïve, and relatively sedentary participants 40-60 years old. A metabololipidomic analysis for protective lipid mediators will be performed on human plasma samples taken at different timepoints from each participant. This study will provide essential preliminary data to inform a future trial evaluating a widely available mind-body therapy (yoga) for the epidemic of chronic inflammation that impacts multiple dimensions of whole-person health.
