(Press-News.org)
“We show that MSK1 retains its importance in converting positive experience into tangible synaptic and cognitive benefits well into old age [...]”
BUFFALO, NY- July 25, 2023 – A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 15, Issue 13, entitled, “MSK1 is required for the beneficial synaptic and cognitive effects of enriched experience across the lifespan.”
Positive experiences, such as social interaction, cognitive training and physical exercise, have been shown to ameliorate some of the harms to cognition associated with aging. Animal models of positive interventions, commonly known as environmental enrichment, strongly influence neuronal morphology and synaptic function and enhance cognitive performance. While the profound structural and functional benefits of enrichment have been appreciated for decades, little is known as to how the environment influences neurons to respond and adapt to these positive sensory experiences.
In this new study, researchers Lorenzo Morè, Lucia Privitera, Daniel D. Cooper, Marianthi Tsogka, J. Simon C. Arthur, and Bruno G. Frenguelli from the University of Warwick, University of Central Lancashire and University of Dundee show that adult and aged male wild-type mice that underwent a 10-week environmental enrichment protocol demonstrated improved performance in a variety of behavioral tasks, including those testing spatial working and spatial reference memory, and an enhancement in hippocampal long-term potentiation.
“Recently, a neuronal protein kinase, mitogen- and stress-activated protein kinase 1 (MSK1) has been identified as being a prime effector within the mammalian brain of the beneficial effects of enrichment in the early phase of the lifespan (birth to 4 months) [34–38].”
Aged animals in particular benefitted from enrichment, performing spatial memory tasks at levels similar to healthy adult mice. Many of these benefits, including in gene expression, were absent in mice with a mutation in an enzyme, MSK1, which is activated by BDNF, a growth factor implicated in rodent and human cognition. The researchers conclude that enrichment is beneficial across the lifespan and that MSK1 is required for the full extent of these experience-induced improvements of cognitive abilities, synaptic plasticity and gene expression.
“We show that MSK1 retains its importance in converting positive experience into tangible synaptic and cognitive benefits well into old age, reinforcing the aged brain’s capacity to benefit from positive experience, MSK1’s prominence as a key player in the response to enrichment, and its potential as a target for enviromimetics.”
Read the full paper: DOI: https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.204833
Corresponding Author: Bruno G. Frenguelli
Corresponding Email: b.g.frenguelli@warwick.ac.uk
Keywords: cognitive reserve, synaptic plasticity, anxiety, spatial memory, LTP
Sign up for free Altmetric alerts about this article: https://aging.altmetric.com/details/email_updates?id=10.18632%2Faging.204833
About Aging-US:
Launched in 2009, Aging publishes papers of general interest and biological significance in all fields of aging research and age-related diseases, including cancer—and now, with a special focus on COVID-19 vulnerability as an age-dependent syndrome. Topics in Aging go beyond traditional gerontology, including, but not limited to, cellular and molecular biology, human age-related diseases, pathology in model organisms, signal transduction pathways (e.g., p53, sirtuins, and PI-3K/AKT/mTOR, among others), and approaches to modulating these signaling pathways.
Please visit our website at www.Aging-US.com and connect with us:
SoundCloud
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube
LabTube
LinkedIn
Reddit
Pinterest
Click here to subscribe to Aging publication updates.
For media inquiries, please contact media@impactjournals.com.
Aging (Aging-US) Journal Office
6666 E. Quaker Str., Suite 1B
Orchard Park, NY 14127
Phone: 1-800-922-0957, option 1
###
END
LA JOLLA, CA—Immune system researchers have designed a computational tool to boost pandemic preparedness. Scientists can use this new algorithm to compare data from vastly different experiments and better predict how individuals may respond to disease.
“We’re trying to understand how individuals fight off different viruses, but the beauty of our method is you can apply it generally in other biological settings, such as comparisons of different drugs or different cancer cell lines,” says Tal Einav, Ph.D., ...
Bacterial biofilms are clusters of microorganisms that form on wetted surfaces virtually everywhere. They harbor pathogens that compromise water quality, and they can disrupt the operation of many different engineered systems through the corrosion, fouling and clogging of tanks, pipes and valves.
In some settings, they could even be deadly. Space suits that enable crew operations outside of the International Space Station use recirculating water to regulate body temperatures in the orbital extremes of full sun (250 F) and full shade (-250 F). But biofilms blooming in those water lines have nearly compromised astronaut safety during ...
AURORA, Colo. (July 25, 2023) – Scientists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus have discovered what they believe to be the central mechanism behind cognitive decline associated with normal aging.
“The mechanism involves the mis-regulation of a brain protein known as CaMKII which is crucial for memory and learning,” said the study’s co-senior author Ulli Bayer, PhD, professor of pharmacology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. “This study directly suggests specific pharmacological treatment strategies.”
The study was published today in the journal `Science Signaling.’
Researchers using ...
Study shows that the shape of objects could be perceived via vision and touch; the inferolateral occipitotemporal cortex selectively encodes object shape even in people who become blind from a very early age, suggesting that the brain is organized as operators that execute a given function regardless of input senses.
#####
In your coverage, please use this URL to provide access to the freely available paper in PLOS Biology: http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.3001930
Article Title: Similar object shape representation encoded in the inferolateral occipitotemporal ...
Conversations on social media about female genital mutilation (FGM) have not changed dramatically over the five years to 2020, according to an analysis of English Twitter data, though there was a shift from raising awareness to calling for an end to the practice. Earlier on, users discussing the topic were mainly from the USA and UK, but later the majority came from Nigeria and Kenya. The research, published in PLOS Global Public Health, may be useful in informing communication and designing culturally effective campaigns ...
Researchers from the American Board of Family Medicine and the University of Minnesota Medical School investigated whether participation in medical school repayment programs impacted the care family physicians provided to patients post graduation. By analyzing data from over 10,000 American Board of Family Medicine National Graduate Survey respondents, the authors examined differences in program participation, participant demographics, scope of practice, and the likelihood of serving medically underserved or rural populations.
The study revealed a significant increase in participation in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program between 2016 and 2020, while participation ...
MIAMI, FLORIDA (JULY 25, 2023) – Cancer centers are uniquely positioned to protect communities and their most vulnerable residents – cancer patients – from climate-driven disasters by bolstering emergency preparedness, noted researchers with Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, the American Cancer Society (ACS) and collaborating organizations.
Writing in a commentary in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the researchers noted that all 71* of the country’s NCI-designated ...
Canadian Patients Report High Levels of Satisfaction From an Integrated Model of Virtual and In-Person Care
In an effort to increase access to care in underserved communities, researchers from the University of Ottawa evaluated the implementation of an integrated virtual care (IVC) model. Their study evaluated the overall experience and satisfaction of patients receiving care through a combination of virtual and in-person visits. A secondary aim was to compare the experiences of patients who had been previously seen in person by a family physician before transitioning to the IVC clinics with those who met their family physician virtually for the first ...
Researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and Case Western Reserve University conducted weekly and monthly surveys of primary care clinicians to examine the use of telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic. The e-surveys were conducted between March 2020 and March 2022 and used convenience sampling. A total of 36 surveys were completed, with an average of 937 respondents per survey, representing clinicians from all 50 states and from multiple specialties.
Initially, respondents reported difficulties in implementing telemedicine, citing challenges with infrastructure and reimbursement mechanisms. However, as time progressed, attitudes toward telemedicine became ...
In an effort to increase access to care in underserved communities, researchers from the University of Ottawa evaluated the implementation of an integrated virtual care (IVC) model. Their study evaluated the overall experience and satisfaction of patients receiving care through a combination of virtual and in-person visits. A secondary aim was to compare the experiences of patients who had been previously seen in person by a family physician before transitioning to the IVC clinics with those who met their family physician virtually for the ...
