Restoring aging-associated memory loss
Nature Neuroscience
July 2, 2012
Memory impairments in older mice may be due to a decrease in DNA methylation in the brain, reports a study published online this week in Nature Neuroscience. These findings suggest a potential cause underlying the loss of memory ability that accompanies normal aging.
Methylation is a mark that is added to DNA that affects whether a gene is active or not. Hilmar Bading and colleagues found that older mice had decreased levels of a protein that methylates DNA in the hippocampus, a region of the brain known to be important in creating and storing memories. If they increased the levels of this protein in the brains of older mice, they remembered just as well as younger mice. Decreasing levels of the protein in younger mice left them just as impaired as older mice.
doi: 10.1038/nn.3151
Research highlights
-
Jun 24
Palaeontology: It sucked to be the prey of ancient cephalopodsScientific Reports
-
Jun 24
Sport science: New wearable sensor to measure neck strain may detect potential concussionScientific Reports
-
Jun 23
Scientific community: Women credited less than men in scientific paper authorshipNature
-
Jun 17
Conservation: Feral cats pushing critically endangered marsupial further towards extinctionScientific Reports
-
Jun 17
Health technology: New cost-effective smartphone test for middle ear functionCommunications Medicine
-
Jun 16
Microbiology: DNA analysis indicates origins of the Black DeathNature