Anna Hartz
A group of researchers in Israel found a link between certain types of positive expectations and a stronger immune response after vaccination.
Many of us know the feeling of hoping a treatment will work. We try a new medicine or a vaccine and we tell ourselves it will help. Most people think of this as a simple mindset. But scientists have spent years trying to understand why expectations matter. They have learned that the brain and the body communicate in surprising ways. A new study now offers a fresh look at how this connection might work in humans.
Reward and motivation
The researchers focused on the part of the brain that handles reward and motivation. These areas can release chemicals that shape how we feel and how we act. The study suggests that these signals may also influence how the immune system produces antibodies, according to Videnskab.
The team worked with 85 volunteers. They divided them into three groups. Two groups received a type of brain training called neurofeedback. This method teaches people to influence their own brain activity. One group trained to increase activity in two reward-related regions, VTA and NAc. These areas help generate and process dopamine. The second group trained different regions that are not linked to reward. The third group had no brain training. Everyone received a hepatitis B vaccine.
The researchers then used brain scans and blood tests. They found that people who were especially good at activating the VTA produced more antibodies. This was a personal pattern rather than a group pattern.
No antibodies without vaccine
The average antibody level between groups did not differ. The researchers believe this is because the ability to influence the reward system varies widely between people. Some are naturally better at it. Others struggle with it.
Experts say the study shows a connection, but not a cause. It cannot prove that changing brain activity will reliably boost the immune system. It also cannot replace medical treatment. The volunteers would not have produced any antibodies without the vaccine. Even so, the findings are interesting. They hint at a possible link between hope, expectation, and biology.
The researchers hope larger studies will test whether improved brain training can someday support vaccine responses or other treatments. For now, the results offer a glimpse into how the mind and body might work together in ways we are only starting to understand.
