The cure for senile sclerosis
"Memory pills" can become a reality
These are manifestations of working memory deficiency. At the same time, these manifestations are not always associated with Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Normally, working memory is used and trained daily. In a simple operation to estimate the tip amount in a restaurant, you need to remember the list of dishes and their approximate cost, put it together and perform an arithmetic action. Retention of many elements in memory at the same time is a central process on which many higher cognitive manifestations depend. As a consequence, age-related deterioration of working memory functions leads to a wide range of cognitive impairments.
Scientists from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida (University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida) study working memory in rats. They were able to link the effectiveness of working memory with the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. The most important substance in this list was gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Normally, it performs inhibitory and inhibitory functions in the central nervous system. Without this substance, the cells become too active, the changes are similar to some of those observed in schizophrenia and epilepsy.
Jennifer Bizon (Ph.D.) and colleagues placed rats in a Skinner box. This box is equipped with a lever that regulates the food supply. In the experiments, the rats had to remember the location of the lever, which was given 30 seconds. In short time intervals, young and elderly individuals coped with the task, but as the time increased, it became increasingly difficult for elderly rats to remember where the lever was. At the same time, not all elderly rats suffered from memory deficits – mostly those with an increased number of GABA receptors in the brain had problems. Scientists tried to block GABA receptors and found that the ability to remember the location of the lever in rats was leveled at the level of young individuals.
Scientists note that it was possible to restore memory to rats due to normalization of receptor activity. The drug they used has not yet been approved for use in humans, but many companies are developing antipsychotics with a similar effect. Life expectancy is increasing, and drugs that help not only prolong life, but also make it complete in old age are in increasing demand. Normalization of cognitive functions is crucial here.
Article by Banuelos et al. Prefrontal Cortical GABAergic Dysfunction Contributes to Age-Related Working Memory Impairment published in The Journal of Neuroscience.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru12.03.2014