The aging brain may be far more regenerative than we thought
In short: For decades, many scientists believed the adult human brain was hard-wired, unable to produce new neurons. New research suggests this could be wrong. Evidence shows that healthy older adults can generate thousands of new brain cells, potentially keeping minds sharper and more resilient as we age.
The long-standing debate over adult human neurogenesis—the birth of new neurons—has been complicated by conflicting data. While neurogenesis is well-documented in rodents and nonhuman primates, some researchers previously argued that the human brain stops this process after adolescence. However, a 2018 study published in Cell Stem Cell analyzed the hippocampi of 28 healthy individuals aged 14 to 79. The team found that even the oldest brains in the study produced thousands of immature neurons and intermediate neural progenitors, challenging the notion that the adult brain is static. While the ability to produce new cells persists, the quality of that production changes with age. Researchers observed that older individuals possessed a smaller pool of progenitor cells—the descendants of stem cells—and showed less vascularization (blood vessel formation). These factors, along with reduced cell-to-cell connectivity, may explain why cognitive-emotional resilience can decline in later life despite the continued presence of new neurons.
This suggests that the issue in aging may not be a complete lack of new cells, but rather a diminished capacity for those cells to integrate and thrive. Further research into "super-agers"—individuals over 80 with outstanding memory—reveals even more nuance. These individuals showed twice as many new neurons in their hippocampi as other older adults with normal memory, and two and a half times as many as those with Alzheimer’s disease. These findings highlight a potential genetic program that supports brain cell survival and communication. While some experts caution that these studies rely on indirect evidence and small sample sizes, the discovery marks a significant shift toward understanding how the brain might be replenished to fight degenerative diseases.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: People Grow Brain Cells Well Into Their 80s | SciShow News
- Also: Older adults grow just as many new brain cells as young people | ScienceDaily
- Also: Some People Keep Razor-Sharp Minds Into Their 80s and Beyond. A New Study Reveals Their Secrets
- Also: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov — News: Humans can make new brain cells into... (The Guardian) - Behind the headlines - NLM
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