14 DAY TRIAL // This gene is called the SIRT1 gene, or Sirtuin1 in humans. It favors longevity and stimulates the memory and the development of the brain cells. Researchers ultimately hope that one day it could be used to prevent or treat diseases like Alzheimer's.
Professor Li-Huei Tsai is the director of the Neurobiology Program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. His team of researchers has proven that Sirtuin1 increases neuronal survival in mice with genetically induced degenerative brain disorders. “We have now found that SIRT1 activity also promotes memory and plasticity,” says professor Tsai, speaking of the capacity of healthy brain cells to stay connected. “This result demonstrates a multi-faceted role of SIRT1 in the brain, further highlighting its potential as a target for the treatment of conditions with impaired cognition.”
Scientists experimented on mice without the SIRT1 gene and observed that their brain development was rather poor and they did not respond to electrical stimulation of the hippocampus. This part of the brain essential to long-term memory and space orientation is also the first area to be attacked by Alzheimer's disease.
Tsai also observed that the mice without the SIRT1 gene also had less neuron development that the control mice and were also less able to differentiate old objects from new ones, in a memory test. This clearly shows a decrease in the brain's activity. “SIRT1 deficient mice are impaired in all three memory paradigms compared to control mice,” says Tsai.
The professor is stressing though that these are just preliminary trials and that additional tests must be made before anything can be done on human subjects.
Degenerative diseases are incurable for now. All that doctors can do is prescribe drugs that will delay and limit its effects. Most degenerative diseases are genetic, they usually run in the family. Several types can be caused by alcoholism, tumors, stroke and others by toxins, viruses or chemical substances.
These findings were published in the journal Nature.