A recent study published in Nature Aging has made a groundbreaking discovery that could lead to the development of treatments for age-related neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Researchers found that it is possible to reverse age-related slowing of brain waste clearance, a process that contributes to the accumulation of toxic proteins in the brain.
The study used advanced imaging techniques to observe and measure how efficiently lymph vessels in the neck, known as cervical lymph vessels, worked in younger and older mice. The results showed that these vessels contracted regularly and efficiently in young mice but became less active and contracting less frequently in older mice, leading to a 63% slowdown in brain waste clearance.
To restore the function of these aging lymph vessels, the researchers used a drug called prostaglandin F2 alpha, which is already approved for clinical use. By applying this drug to the cervical lymph vessels, they were able to restore the vessels’ ability to pump cerebrospinal fluid out of the brain as efficiently as in younger animals.
This finding offers a potential pathway for developing treatments that target brain waste removal, which could delay or mitigate the effects of age-related neurological disorders. While the study was conducted in mice and more research is needed before applying this approach to humans, the results are promising and could lead to new strategies for combating diseases linked to aging and toxic protein buildup in the brain.
Source: https://www.psypost.org/reversing-agings-impact-on-brain-waste-clearance-new-study-highlights-promising-drug/