Exercise alters brain chemistry to protect aging synapses
Enhanced nerve transmission seen in older adults who remained active


Date:
January 7, 2022
Source:
University of California - San Francisco
Summary:
When elderly people stay active, their brains have more of a
class of proteins that enhances the connections between neurons
to maintain healthy cognition, a new study has found.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== [Couple jogging in the | Credit: (c) lordn / stock.adobe.com] Couple
jogging in the park (stock image).

Credit: (c) lordn / stock.adobe.com [Couple jogging in the | Credit:
(c) lordn / stock.adobe.com] Couple jogging in the park (stock image).

Credit: (c) lordn / stock.adobe.com Close When elderly people stay
active, their brains have more of a class of proteins that enhances
the connections between neurons to maintain healthy cognition, a UC San Francisco study has found.


==========================================================================
This protective impact was found even in people whose brains at autopsy
were riddled with toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases.

"Our work is the first that uses human data to show that synaptic
protein regulation is related to physical activity and may drive the
beneficial cognitive outcomes we see," said Kaitlin Casaletto, PhD,
an assistant professor of neurology and lead author on the study, which
appears in the January 7 issue of Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal
of the Alzheimer's Association.

The beneficial effects of physical activity on cognition have been shown
in mice but have been much harder to demonstrate in people.

Casaletto, a neuropsychologist and member of the Weill Institute for Neurosciences, worked with William Honer, MD, a professor of psychiatry
at the University of British Columbia and senior author of the study,
to leverage data from the Memory and Aging Project at Rush University in Chicago. That project tracked the late-life physical activity of elderly participants, who also agreed to donate their brains when they died.

"Maintaining the integrity of these connections between neurons may
be vital to fending off dementia, since the synapse is really the
site where cognition happens," Casaletto said. "Physical activity --
a readily available tool -- may help boost this synaptic functioning."
More Proteins Mean Better Nerve Signals


========================================================================== Honer and Casaletto found that elderly people who remained active had
higher levels of proteins that facilitate the exchange of information
between neurons.

This result dovetailed with Honer's earlier finding that people who had
more of these proteins in their brains when they died were better able
to maintain their cognition late in life.

To their surprise, Honer said, the researchers found that the effects
ranged beyond the hippocampus, the brain's seat of memory, to encompass
other brain regions associated with cognitive function.

"It may be that physical activity exerts a global sustaining effect,
supporting and stimulating healthy function of proteins that facilitate synaptic transmission throughout the brain," Honer said.

Synapses Safeguard Brains Showing Signs of Dementia The brains of most
older adults accumulate amyloid and tau, toxic proteins that are the
hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease pathology. Many scientists believe
amyloid accumulates first, then tau, causing synapses and neurons to
fall apart.

Casaletto previously found that synaptic integrity, whether measured
in the spinal fluid of living adults or the brain tissue of autopsied
adults, appeared to dampen the relationship between amyloid and tau,
and between tau and neurodegeneration.

"In older adults with higher levels of the proteins associated
with synaptic integrity, this cascade of neurotoxicity that
leads to Alzheimer's disease appears to be attenuated," she
said. "Taken together, these two studies show the potential
importance of maintaining synaptic health to support the brain
against Alzheimer's disease." special promotion Get a free digital
"Metabolism Myths" issue of New Scientist and discover the 7 things
we always get wrong about diet and exercise. Claim_yours_now_>>> landing.newscientist.com/what-is-new-scientist-sd/ ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by
University_of_California_-_San_Francisco. Original written by Robin
Marks. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Kaitlin Casaletto, Alfredo Ramos‐Miguel, Anna VandeBunte,
Molly
Memel, Aron Buchman, David Bennett, William Honer. Late‐life
physical activity relates to brain tissue synaptic integrity
markers in older adults. Alzheimer's & Dementia, 2022; DOI:
10.1002/alz.12530 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220107100955.htm
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