Older Brains Get Too Full for New Information

According to new research, learning becomes more difficult as we get older because our brains get too full for new information. This may be due, in part, to finding that with advanced age we get less sleep during the stage in which we don’t dream. Both studies are reported in the prestigious Nature family of journals. As brains age they undergo many changes at both the structural and molecular levels. It has therefore been difficult to tease apart which normal biological changes are responsible for certain cognitive changes that accompany aging. Two recent studies have examined long-term memory formation, retention, and retrieval in aging brains, and have come to the interesting conclusions that older brains are less able than younger ones to incorporate newly acquired knowledge into long-term storage [1] and that this may be partially due to the fact that they have diminished levels of non-rapid eye movement (REM) sleep [2]. The first study used mice genetically engineered to over-express just one subunit of the NMDA receptor, NR2A, also known as Glutamate Receptor, Ionotropic, N-methyl-D-aspartate, Subunit 2A (GRIN2A), the predominant molecular receptor for controlling synaptic plasticity and memory function, in the forebrain. Forebrain: the largest part and most anterior region of the brain, most of which is made up of the cerebrum; responsible for a variety of functions including receiving and processing sensory information, thinking, perceiving, producing and un...
Source: Highlight HEALTH - Category: Medical Scientists Authors: Source Type: blogs