Scientists at Stanford University’s Wu Tsai Neuroscience Institute have found that stimulating the formation of protective fatty sheaths around nerve fibers can prevent neurodegenerative diseases. Research results published In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Researchers explained that myelination is necessary for the rapid transmission of electrical signals in the brain. This process is the formation of special fatty membranes around the processes of nerve cells during maturation. The destruction or loss of the myelin layer seen in multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease causes significant cognitive and physical impairments.
In a study involving rodents, scientists realized that the cellular mechanism required for the formation of these complex myelination processes is called SRF. In the absence of activity of this transcription factor (a protein involved in RNA formation), defects in the formation of actin filaments were observed in the early stages of cell differentiation in mice.
This disorder prevented the formation of myelin sheaths around axons, the neuronal processes through which nerve impulses are transmitted. Researchers have found that loss of SRF triggers a gene signature associated with aging and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. Injecting cerebrospinal fluid from young animals into older animals was able to activate SRF and thus “strengthen” the neurons.
According to scientists, working with SRF may be a promising approach to treating diseases associated with the destruction of myelin formation. Researchers have suggested that activating SRF may stimulate myelination and prevent diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and multiple sclerosis.
Previously AppearedDementia may present as headaches and tenderness.