The brain plays a major role in… aging processand scientists think they have identified the specific cells that control this.
In a study in mice, researchers at the Allen Institute identified certain cells that showed “major changes” with age, especially in one specific “hot spot,” according to a press release.
Mice were chosen because their brains show “many similarities”. human brain.
“Our brain is made up of thousands of types of cells, which perform different functions,” Hongkui Zeng, co-author and director of the Allen Institute for Brain Science in Seattle, told Fox News Digital. “Our study shows that different cell types are differentially sensitive to the aging process.”
The research, funded by the National Institutes of Health, was published in the journal Nature.
Scientists at the Allen Institute believe they have identified the specific brain cells that control aging. (iStock)
The researchers used RNA sequencing and brain mapping tools to analyze more than 1.2 million brain cells from young mice (2 months old) and older mice (18 months old).
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The 18-month-old mice are roughly equivalent to a “late middle-aged human,” the researchers indicated.
The researchers grouped the cells into 847 different types and identified almost all of them 2,500 genes According to Zeng, that changed with age.
Mice (not shown) were chosen because their brains have “many similarities” to human brains, the researchers said. (iStock)
The cells associated with aging showed an increase in inflammation and a decrease in ‘neuronal function’.
“Changes in these genes indicate impaired neuronal structure and function in many neuronal and glial cell types, as well as increased immune response and inflammation in the immune and vascular (blood vessel) cell types of the brain,” Zeng explains.
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The cells that underwent the greatest changes were those in the hypothalamus, the part of the brain linked to food intake, energy balance and metabolism, the researchers noted.
This suggests that this area is a “hotspot for aging,” Zeng noted, and that there could be a link between diet, lifestyle factorsbrain aging and the risk of age-related cognitive impairment.
“Aging is the main risk factor for many brain diseases.”
“The study findings reinforce the idea that maintaining a… healthy lifestylePromoting a healthy metabolic state and reducing inflammation in the body and brain can slow or delay the aging process and reduce the risks of aging-associated brain diseases,” he said.
The hope is that this discovery could lead to new age-related therapies to improve the function of these cells and help prevent neurodegenerative diseases, the researchers said.
Study researchers discuss the findings at the Allen Institute. (Allen Institute)
“Aging is the main risk factor for many brain diseases,” Zeng noted.
“Our study provides a highly detailed genetic map of which brain cell types may be most affected by aging and suggests new gene and cell targets for the development of new treatments for aging-related brain diseases.”
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The study had some limitations, the authors acknowledged.
“The main limitation of our study is that the findings are correlational,” Zeng said.
Inflammation plays a role in chronic age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, a neurologist noted. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
“We do not yet know whether the gene expression changes observed in specific cell types are causal of brain aging. Our study lays the foundation by providing a detailed genetic map and cell targets.”
Zeng called up future studies to investigate the cells’ role in aging and determine whether reversing the changes could slow the aging process.
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Dr. Earnest Lee Murray, a board-certified neurologist from Jackson-Madison County General Hospital in Jackson, Tennessee, noted that the new research adds to existing evidence supporting the role of diet in human brain health.
The detailed “brain road map” will be very useful for future research into aging and potential therapies, said Murray, who was not involved in the study.
The detailed ‘brain roadmap’ discovered in the study will be very useful for future research into aging and potential therapies, experts agree. (iStock)
It has been known for some time that inflammation plays a role in chronic age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’sthe neurologist noted.
‘More and more evidence suggests that many chronic diseases are preventable, and that often comes down to the fact that diet and exercise,” he told Fox News Digital.
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“Changing the diet to exclude processed foods and initiating certain habits, such as intermittent fasting, has been shown to reduce this cellular inflammation that seems to lead to so many diseases.”
