Brain enzyme PLA2G2F preserves memory into old age
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Researchers screening the mouse hippocampus identified PLA2G2F, a phospholipase enzyme that supports cognitive resilience during ageing. Mice lacking the gene showed surging inflammation, neuron degradation and lower spatial-memory scores, while mice with excess Pla2g2f had less inflammation, better-connected neurons and higher memory scores as they aged. In human donor brains, PLA2G2F activity rose with age and was highest in resilient individuals whose cognition remained intact despite amyloid-beta deposits. The findings, published in Nature, link the enzyme to maintenance of memory in the presence of age-related pathology. Still open is how PLA2G2F activity could be targeted therapeutically in people, and whether boosting it can protect cognition in neurodegenerative disease.
Written by a model from the reports · updated 3 hours ago
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- nature.comPickMemory stays strong in old age when this brain enzyme is active
The enzyme PLA2G2F, a phospholipase identified in mouse hippocampus screening, supports cognitive resilience in ageing. Mice lacking the gene showed surging inflammation, neuron degradation and lower spatial-memory scores, while mice with excess Pla2g2f had less inflammation, better-connected neurons and higher memory scores with age. In human donor brains, PLA2G2F activity rose with age and was highest in resilient individuals whose cognition remained intact despite amyloid-beta deposits.
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