Research tips on how to stop the decline as we grow older

Tokyo: The passage of time may be unfriendly to the human body, but new research suggests the causes and possible solutions for some illnesses and declines that often come with age.

Scientists have long known that cognitive decline as we grow older and that certain age-related diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, are associated with inflammation, but why and how. It is clear exactly if this is the case.

A study published in Nature identifies the role of messenger hormones found at much higher levels in older people and mice than in younger people.

When the hormone was blocked in older mice, they were able to perform as well as more youthful rodents in their memory and navigation tests.

Researchers have found that high levels of hormones affect the metabolism of immune cells called macrophages, encouraging them to store energy rather than consume it.

It effectively starved cells and sent them to the harmful inflammatory hyperdrives associated with age-related cognitive decline and some age-related diseases.

The hormone prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is “a major regulator of all types of inflammation, good or bad, and its effects depend on the receptors that are activated,” said the lead author of the study. Katrin Andreason told AFP.

“In this study, we identified the EP2 receptor … as a receptor that causes energy depletion and maladaptive inflammation,” added Andreasson, a professor of neurology at Stanford University.

After separating the roles played by PGE2, Andreason and her team set out to see if there was a way to counteract the negative effects.

They administered two compounds to mice that could block EP2 receptors and found that they reversed the metabolic problems found in older macrophages-restoring more youthful behavior and disruptive. Prevents inflammatory activity.

They found a similar effect in mice genetically modified with a deletion of the EP2 receptor.

— ‘Very excited’ —

Older mice that received the compound or had their receptors removed from the gene functioned similarly to younger mice when testing navigation and spatial memory. Both are exacerbated by illnesses such as aging and Alzheimer’s disease.

“Our study suggests that the development of maladapted inflammation and cognitive decline in aging can be reversed rather than static or permanent,” the study states. ..

Andreason said the findings are still preliminary, but could affect a wide range of conditions.

“This applies to most age-related inflammatory diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, atherosclerosis, and arthritis,” she told AFP, “very excited” about possible uses. It was.

However, the study is still in its infancy and there are some unanswered questions. It is not yet clear how much PGE2 is and how it accumulates throughout life.

Also, since neither of the compounds was tested in humans, no adverse side effects were seen in the tested mice, but it is unclear if they are toxic.

Andreason said her team is now working on some of the questions posed by the study, including a more complete understanding of the mechanisms that cause cognitive decline and investigating the role of cell metabolic function in aging. Stated.

“Intriguing, this is an early stage study done in mice,” said Susan Koolhaas, head of research at Alzheimer’s Disease Research UK, who was not involved in the study.

“The results are worth further follow-up, but many steps need to be taken before we know if this is likely to be a successful strategy for the treatment of dementia,” she added. It was.

“We need to look at experiments in an environment that closely reflects the human brain.”