This study indicates that people with depression do have genuine choices in terms of the help that they get. Drug therapy is important, but a lot of patients are not terribly keen on that for reasons that I respect. But there are clear, definable psychological interventions that do help people get better from depression more quickly than they would otherwise do. The communication from the immune system to the brain is mediated by cytokines, which are peptides that orchestrate the immune response with a wide range of other biologic activities. During immune stimulation, cytokines such as interleukins and interferons are produced both in the periphery and in the brain, where they can affect neural, neuroendocrine, and behavioral functions through specific receptors.
Many interactions occur between the immune, neural, and psychological systems.
In addition, when the body is confronted by pathogens, the immune system serves as a sensory organ, alerting the brain to the presence of infection- induced immune activation. Humor appreciation appears to be based in the lower frontal lobes of the brain, a location associated with social and emotional judgment and planning, according to imaging research. That might explain why people who have suffered strokes involving the lower frontal lobes of the brain may have alterations of personality which include loss of their sense of humor. A small part of the frontal lobes appears critical to our ability to recognize a joke. Although the purpose of humor and laughter is still largely unknown despite 2,000 years of speculation, having a sense of humor is a key part of our personalities and it can play a powerful role in balancing negative emotions, such as fear.