メディエイゴ

It is already known that a person's social environment(1) can affect(2) his or her health, with those who are socially isolated(3) ― that is, lonely ― suffering from higher mortality(4) than people who are not.

Now, in the first study of its kind, published in the current issue(5) of the journal Genome Biology(6), UCLA researchers(7) have identified(8) a distinct(9) pattern of gene expression(10) in immune cells(11) from people who experience chronically(12) high levels of(13) loneliness(14). The findings suggest that feelings of social isolation(15) are linked to(16) alterations(17) in the activity(18) of genes(19) that drive(20) inflammation(21), the first response of the immune system(22). The study provides a molecular framework(23) for understanding why social factors(24) are linked to an increased risk of heart disease(25), viral infections(26) and cancer.

Having previously(27) established(28) that lonely people suffer from higher mortality than people who are not lonely, researchers are now trying to determine whether that risk is a result of reduced social resources(29), such as physical(30) or economic assistance(31), or is due to the biological impact(32) of social isolation on the functioning of the human body.

"What this study shows is that the biological impact of social isolation reaches down into(33) some of our most basic internal(34) processes ― the activity of our genes," said Steve Cole, an associate professor(35) of medicine in the division(36) of hematology(37) and oncology(38) at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a member of the Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology(39).

"We found that changes in immune cell gene expression(40) were specifically(41) linked to the subjective experience(42) of social distance(43)," said Cole, who is also a member of UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive(44) Cancer Center.