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With age, the appearance of our brain changes – it becomes darker and seems to be looser. The age of a person also affects the ability of the brain to remember, process information and solve various problems. As he writes “Doctor Peter”, a group of scientists from Xiamen University in China decided to find out what factors affect brain aging and whether this process can be reversed somehow.
They found that menin (a hypothalamic protein) is a key inhibitor of hypothalamic neuroinflammation. Thus, the level of menin in the hypothalamus decreases with age. A group of researchers decided to investigate the level of this reduction in laboratory mice. They found that the loss of menin in young mice leads to increased neuroinflammation in the hypothalamus, including reduced bone mass and skin thickness, cognitive decline, and a moderate reduction in lifespan.
Another change brought about by the loss of menin was a decrease in the amino acid D-serine. D-serine is found in some foods: soybeans, eggs, fish, nuts.
Scientists also managed to establish that if menin is artificially delivered to the hypothalamus of elderly mice, this will affect their brain function and some aspects of health in general. Thirty days later, they found an improvement in skin thickness and bone mass. Mice also became better learners, more willing to explore the world, better control of balance. All of this correlated with increased levels of D-serine in the hippocampus, a central region of the brain important for learning and memory.
Researchers suggest that a diet high in D-serine may have beneficial effects on brain function and cognition.
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