ISSN: 0889-1591

Brain, Behavior, and Immunity

Editor-in-Chief: C. M. Pariante, MD, PhD, MRCPsych

Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, founded in 1987, is the official journal of the Psychoneuroimmunology Research Society (PNIRS). This innovative journal publishes peer-reviewed basic, experimental, and clinical studies dealing with behavioral, neural, endocrine, and immune system interactions in humans and animals. It is an international, interdisciplinary journal devoted to original research in neuroscience, immunology, integrative physiology, behavioral biology, psychiatry, psychology, and clinical medicine and is inclusive of research at the molecular, cellular, social, and whole organism level. The journal features online submission and review. Manuscripts are typically peer-reviewed and returned to authors within 30 days of submission, leading to timely publication of experimental results. There are no submission fees or page charges for Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, which is published eight times a year. Detailed instructions for authors can be found at http://ees.elsevier.com/bbi/.

Research areas include:

• • Physiological mechanisms that convey messages between the immune and nervous systems and regulate their functions
• • Stress and immunity, including the role of stress-related hormones and neurotransmitters on the immune system.
• • Actions of cytokines, growth factors and PAMP activation on neuronal and glial cells that regulate behavior, learning, memory and neurogenesis
• • Role of hormones, growth factors and cytokines in the immune and central or peripheral nervous systems
• • Interactions between the immune system and brain that are involved in development of neurological, psychiatric, and mental health disorders
• • Role of immunological processes in neurodegenerative disorders
• • The effects of psychotropic medications on immunological mechanisms and their potential relevance to therapeutic interventions
• • Neuroimaging studies examining how immunological mechanisms affect brain structure and function
• • Clinical trials and experimental studies testing the effects on both immune stimulation and immune suppression on brain and behavior
• • The role of microglia in pain, psychological processes and in psychiatric disorders
• • Immunological mechanisms involved in traumatic brain injury and its resolution
• • Immunologic disorders, infection and behavior
• • Role of the immune system in development and maintenance of inflammatory and chronic pain
• • Immune mechanisms that regulate the blood-brain-interface (BBI)
• • Immune factors that affect health psychology
• • Sleep, exercise, immunity and health
• • Immune system interactions that affect behavior following use of psychotropic drugs, alcohol and other drugs of abuse
• • Healthy aging of the immune system and brain
• • Role of inflammation and stress during perinatal development
• • Cancer and its treatment, stem cells and their effects on brain behavior and immunity
• • Reciprocal communication between the microbiome, immune and nervous systems
• • Regulation of nerve injury and repair by the immune system
• • Psychosocial, behavioral, and neuroendocrine influences on immunity and on the development and progression of immunologically-mediated diseases
• • Nutrition, inflammation, obesity and behavior
• • Genomics of behavior and immunity.

Boosting immunity is fundamental to body’s defense against virus: Taiwanese psychologist

Researcher finds that regular lifestyle and sturdy mental health can also enhance immunity

     

By George Liao, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

2020/03/30 16:50

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Taiwanese psychiatrist has emphasized the importance of boosting the immune system in infection prevention in a research report recently published by Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, the official journal of the Psychoneuroimmunology Research Society (PNIRS).

Tainan Municipal An-Nan Hospital psychiatrist Su Kuan-pin (蘇冠賓) said in his report that even though COVID-19 is a highly contagious disease, its mortality rates are low. In addition to wearing face masks and washing hands frequently, he suggested that boosting immunity is fundamental to individuals’ defense against the disease, CNA reported. His research finds that a regular life style and good psychological adjustment can also enhance immunity.

The research report points out that people who have the most immunity to the virus have the common characteristics of exercising regularly, living a regular life, having sufficient sleep, having a balanced diet, maintaining good interpersonal relationships, and a social life.

Su added that immunity and mental health are closely related. He noted that the pandemic is not as fatal as most people have imagined and that what is really scary is the fear and feeling of helplessness people have towards the unknown. He recommended that people learn to manage their negative thinking and alleviate their mental burdens by limiting their intake of related information to under 30 minutes a day.