Why Breathing Reduces Anxiety and Boosts Our Mood

Research to transform health care, society

This year, UCSF Postdoc Slam talks covered cutting-edge research aimed at solving problems such as chronic pain, poor maternal health care for Black pregnant people and food insecurity. Presentations were judged on clarity and the ability to convey their work and spark curiosity.

“At UCSF and around the world, scientists are tackling some of the most vexing health challenges of our time, from pioneering cancer therapies to gene editing technologies to uncovering new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases,” UCSF’s Vice Provost of Student Academic Affairs and Dean of the Graduate Division, Nicquet Blake, PhD, told dozens of attendees and hundreds of remote viewers. “Their research holds immense potential to transform health care and improve lives.”

Blake continued: “Yet, in today's society where skepticism towards science and scientists has grown, the ability to communicate the importance of the work that you do as a scientist has never been more crucial.”

‘The simplest way to deal with a Cybertruck’

To study the effect of breathing on anxious states, Klein monitored the brain activity of mice and compared it to their breathing and behavior. Her preliminary data found that as breathing patterns slowed, brain activity in regions of the brain associated with anxiety did too, fluctuating at the same rhythm – suggesting that breathing might impact signals in the rodents' brains that changed their mood and behavior.

The findings could one day lead to the development of specific breathing therapies for mental health conditions, expanding treatment options, she explained.

“But for you,” she told a packed auditorium, “it’s important to remember the simplest way to deal with a Cybertruck that will cut you off is to take a deep breath,” she said as she dramatically exhaled.

Seeking a cure for Multiple Sclerosis

Klein’s gift of clear communication and a thoughtful, circular narrative won her first place at the Postdoc Slam. She walked away with $4,000.

Sonia Nocera, PhD, took home second place for a dramatic presentation revealing how a form of sugar found in breast milk could one day play a role in regenerating myelin – a protective coating found around neurons, much like the plastic sheath around a copper electrical wire. Nocera, who left the audience giggling with her comedic performance, bagged $2,000 as well as an additional $750 for taking home the People’s Choice Award by popular vote.

Neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis attack myelin, short circuiting the network of neurons that help us to eat, breathe and move. Nocera is part of the lab of Jonah Chan, PhD, who, together with Ari Green, PhD, has long sought to discover how to repair myelin to reverse damage done by diseases like MS.

Too good to choose just one

There was a two-way tie for third place. Colin Hoy, PhD, wowed judges with his extraordinarily simple explanation of work to unearth the precise neural circuits responsible for a range of treatment-resistant mental health conditions. His research, which elicited audible “ohhhhs” from audience and judges alike, could one day herald a new era in precision brain stimulation therapies for neuropsychiatric disorders.

Hoy tied with Alicer K. Andrew, PhD, who profiled her study to uncover why some people living with HIV can stay healthy for longer before needing treatment. This rare subset of people, often dubbed “elite controllers,” are helping scientists like Andrew understand why the virus does not subside like others with treatment but instead persists in pockets or “reservoirs.”