Aging

A recent study of adult neural stem cells suggests a new route for research and development of  treatments for neurodegenerative disease in elderly patients. Within the last 20 years neuroscientists have shown that new neurons are generated in the brain throughout the lifespan. This finding opened a new area of research aimed at understanding if adult neural stem cells can be used in therapies for neurodegenerative diseases. A challenge with this approach is that there are fewer neural stem cell in the aged brain and the loss of stem cells occurs at just the time when neurodegenerative…

Women live longer than men but it may not be a great life.   In a study that included 5,888 people over 65, women suffered up to two and a half times more disabilities than men of the same age and the higher rates of obesity and arthritis among these women explained up to 48 percent of the gender gap in disability – above all other common chronic health conditions.  Obesity and arthritis that take root during early and middle age significantly contribute to women's decreased quality of life during their senior years, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center. "…

Thinking your memory will get worse as you get older may actually be a self-fulfilling prophecy. Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that senior citizens who think older people should perform poorly on tests of memory actually score much worse than seniors who do not buy in to negative stereotypes about aging and memory loss. In a study published earlier this month, psychology professor Dr. Tom Hess and a team of researchers from NC State show that older adults' ability to remember suffers when negative stereotypes are "activated" in a given situation. "For example,…

Scientists at the University of Liverpool have developed a new method to help researchers identify genes that can help protect the body during the aging process. The team developed a method of analysing genes in multiple ageing tissue types in both animals and humans. The analysis, which included more than five million gene measurements, highlighted the mechanisms used by the body to protect against cellular changes with age that can result in conditions such as muscle degeneration and cognitive aging.  The new method could help further understanding into anti-aging interventions by…

Transcatheter valve implantation is a newly developed technique for the curative treatment of high-grade aortic stenosis. It is likely to be of benefit especially to elderly, multimorbid patients for whom the risk of open heart surgery would be too great. The initial results obtained with this technique at the German Heart Center in Munich are presented in the current issue of Deutsches Ärzteblatt International by Sabine Bleiziffer and her colleagues .  From June 2007 to September 2008, aortic valvular prostheses were successfully implanted with the transcatheter technique in 150…

Yuan et al. have identified another anti-cancer effect of the "longevity" protein SIRT1. By speeding the destruction of the tumor promoter c-Myc, SIRT1 curbs cell division. The study will be published in the Journal of Cell Biology. The yeast and nematode equivalents of SIRT1 are fountains of youth that stretch lifespan. Whether SIRT1 slows aging in mammals isn't certain, but it's beneficial in other ways. The protein tunes up metabolism, reducing blood levels of glucose and insulin, and might forestall neurodegenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer's disease and ALS. Given its pro-life…

What's the key to everlasting youth? For years now, evidence has steadily accumulated, from studies on mice, flies, worms, and even yeast, that cutting calories is the secret to a long lifespan - at least in a wide range of non-human organisms. But does this work in humans? This question is tantalizing, yet frustratingly difficult to get a handle on. The fact that you can increase lifespan in organisms from yeast to mice by calorie restriction strongly implies that this should be true in humans as well - I find it incredibly unlikely that we're an exception to such a widespread phenomenon.…

A new study conducted at Mayo Clinic and published in the April issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings reports that one in six patients receiving therapeutic doses of certain drugs for Parkinson's disease develops new-onset, potentially destructive behaviors, notably compulsive gambling or hypersexuality. That may make grandpa a lot more interesting in doses but hedonistic, destructive behavior can be life-altering for the family members no amused by those antics, like the wife who finds her house mortgaged to have gambling money. Dopamine agonists are a class of drugs that include pramipexole and…

Older people can dance their way towards improved health and happiness, according to a report from the Changing Ageing Partnership (CAP).  The research, by Dr Jonathan Skinner from Queen’s University Belfast, reveals the social, mental and physical benefits of social dancing for older people. It suggests that dancing staves of illness, and even counteracts decline in aging. Recommendations include the expansion of social dance provision for older people in order to aid successful aging and help older people enjoy longer and healthier lives. Jonathan Skinner, Lecturer in Social…

Here's another reason to hate leftovers. A research study in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology sheds light on one cause of arthritis: bacteria. In the study, scientists from the United States and The Netherlands show that a specific gene called NOD2 triggers arthritis or makes it worse when leftover remnants of bacteria cell walls, called muramyl dipeptide or MDP, are present. This discovery offers an important first step toward new treatments to prevent or lessen the symptoms of inflammatory arthritis. "Despite recent advances in the treatment of arthritis, none target its cause," said…