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Nerve Cell Production Linked With Memory in Humans
The University of Florida researchers provided clues about processes involved in age- and health-related memory loss and reveal potential cellular targets for drug therapy.
The researchers studied how stem cells in a memory-related region of the brain, called the hippocampus, proliferate and change into different types of nerve cells.
"The findings suggest that if we can increase the regeneration of nerve ells in the hippocampus we can alleviate or prevent memory loss in humans," said Florian Siebzehnrubl of the UF College of Medicine.
"This process gives us what pharmacologists call a 'druggable target.'"
In animal studies, it was found that disrupting nerve cell generation resulted in the loss of memory function, while increasing the production of new nerve cells led to improved memory.
To investigate whether the same is true in humans, the UF researchers, in collaboration with colleagues in Germany, studied 23 patients who had epilepsy and varying degrees of associated memory loss.
They analyzed stem cells from brain tissue removed during epilepsy surgery, and evaluated the patients' pre-surgery memory function.
In patients with low memory test scores, stem cells could not generate new nerve cells in laboratory cultures, but in patients with normal memory scores, stem cells were able to proliferate.
That showed, for the first time, a clear correlation between patient's memory and the ability of their stem cells to generate new nerve cells.
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More News on: Alzheimers Disease, Parkinsons Disease Surgical Treatment, Brain Exercises to Improve Memory, Von Recklinghausen's Disease
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