You can try to restart the aging brain

For a long time, it was believed that memory problems were a natural consequence of aging. However, a new study from Virginia shows that the reason is not age per se, but specific changes at the molecular level. Moreover, these processes can be corrected and memory can be improved.

The team of Professor Timothy Jarom from Virginia Tech conducted two large-scale studies in which they used gene editing technologies to influence brain function in elderly animals. In both cases, the result was the same — the memory really improved.

“Memory loss is not just an age—related feature, but a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. Our results show that it is possible to understand exactly which processes in the brain are going wrong — and learn how to fix them,” says Jarom.

The first area of research concerned a process called K63-polyubiquitination— a kind of molecular tag system that controls the behavior of proteins in the brain. In young organisms, it helps cells communicate and form memories, but as they age, it begins to malfunction.

It was found that in two key areas of the brain — the hippocampus (responsible for memory) and the amygdala (emotional memory) — this process is disrupted in different ways. In the hippocampus, the activity of K63-polyubiquitination increases, while in the amygdala, on the contrary, it decreases. Using CRISPR-dCas13 technology, the researchers were able to correct these changes, and memory improved in the elderly rats.

In the second study, the team focused on the IGF2 gene, which is responsible for the growth and formation of memories. With age, this gene does not work well due to a chemical process called DNA methylation – tags accumulate on it, which literally turn off its work.

Using another editing technology, CRISPR—dCas9, these tags were removed and the gene was reactivated. After that, the elderly animals showed significantly better results in memory tests – “We literally turned the gene back on. When this happened, the elderly rats began to remember much better,” said Jarom.

The study also showed that the intervention is effective only at a certain stage — when memory loss has already begun, but has not yet gone too far.

It is emphasized that memory does not depend on a single gene or molecule. Brain aging is the result of many small processes, and only a comprehensive understanding of their interaction will help develop real—world treatments for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

“We see that some age-related changes can be reversed. This gives us hope that one day we will be able not just to slow down, but to stop the deterioration of memory,” concluded Jarom.