Intelligent Living
Scientists Found A Way To Reverse Age-Related Memory Loss
(Credit: Gordon Johnson from Pixabay)
HealthScience

Scientists Found A Way To Reverse Age-Related Memory Loss

Scientists at Cambridge and Leeds discovered it’s possible to mitigate age-related memory decline by modifying structures in the brain known as perineuronal nets (PNNs). They reversed age-related memory loss in mice successfully and believe the achievement could lead to memory-loss prevention treatments for people as they age.

In the study, the team demonstrated that changes in the brain’s extracellular matrix (the ‘scaffolding’ around nerve cells) lead to aging-related memory loss and that it’s possible to reverse these changes using genetic treatments.

Professor James Fawcett from the University of Cambridge’s John van Geest Centre for Brain Repair said:

What is exciting about this is that although our study was only in mice, the same mechanism should operate in humans – the molecules and structures in the human brain are the same as those in rodents. This suggests that it may be possible to prevent humans from developing memory loss in old age.

PNNs are cartilage-like structures that envelope the brain’s inhibitory neurons, helping stabilize synaptic activity. They appear in humans around the age of five and essentially put the breaks on neuroplasticity when the connections in the brain are optimized. Neuroplasticity is our brain’s ability to learn and adapt. PNNs play a vital role in neuroplasticity and memory-making.

And while they support the effective functioning of a mature adult brain, they also limit future neural plasticity and adaptability by their very nature. Therefore, several recent studies have investigated ways to modulate PNNs in adult brains to treat various diseases, from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to diabetes. This new study by UK researchers focused on elucidating the role PNNs play in memory acquisition. Hypothetically, modulating PNN function could reverse age-related memory loss.

PNNs contain compounds called chondroitin sulphates – chemicals that either promote or inhibit the function of PNNs. For example, chondroitin 6-sulphate promotes neuroplasticity while chondroitin 4-sulphate inhibits it. The balance of these compounds changes as we age. The levels of chondroitin 6-sulphate decrease, affecting our ability to learn and form new memories, which leads to age-related memory decline.

Scientists Found A Way To Reverse Age-Related Memory Loss
Spatially oriented neurons in a mouse brain. (Credit: Michael Shribak/Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA)

The team investigated whether manipulating the PNNs’ chondroitin sulphate composition could restore neuroplasticity and alleviate age-related memory loss. First, they altered the composition in old mice and found that an increase in chondroitin 6-sulphate levels restored their memory to levels seen in their younger counterparts. Then, the researchers genetically modified mice to have low chondroitin 6-sulphate levels, which resulted in mice showing signs of premature memory loss as young as 11 weeks.

Dr. Jessica Kwok, from the University of Leeds’ School of Biomedical Sciences, said:

We saw remarkable results when we treated the aging mice with this treatment. The memory and ability to learn were restored to levels they would not have seen since they were much younger.

What’s exciting is that the team has identified a potential drug already approved for human use that can inhibit PNN formation. It’s now being tested in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease.

While the researchers stress it is very early days for the work, they are optimistic the mechanisms should translate to humans.

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