Aging
has always been a major discussion for society as far as what it means and if
we should treat it. The process of aging, or senescence, is sometimes treated
negatively in our society. From senility
to dependence on others, older individuals are sometimes perceived as
detriments to society. In order to avoid
such a social stigma, aging is something that is actively avoided. We try our best to stay young and healthy and
attempt to avoid detriments in our physical and mental abilities. In an effort
to understand the impacts of aging many researchers have performed experiments
that prove to be useful in comprehending age effects.
In the
paper, “Regeneration of New Neurons is Preserved in Aged Vomeronasal Epithelia”
by Dr. Jessica Brann and Dr. Stuart Firestein, the impacts of age on mice. During a seminar through Loyola University
Chicago’s Neuroscience Seminar series, Dr. Brann gave a lecture on how the
vomeronasal organ had the capacity to produce a lifelong proliferation of the
neurons. This is significant because the
nervous system typically has a difficult time completing neurogenesis and is
isolated to particular segments of the nervous system. Using BrdU, an analog of tymidine as a cell
proliferation marker, Brann and Firestein, observed that neurogenesis and
repair of neurons remained similar in young and old mice (18-24 months). The
significance of this research showed that, there was a particular part of the
body (vomeronasal organ) whose regenerative functions were not impaired by the
effects of age.
Not all
parts of the body behave this way- having the ability to regenerate
sufficiently with increasing age. “Impact of Age on Liver Regeneration Response
to Injury After Partial Hepactectomy in a Rat Model” an article by Sanchez-Hidalgo
et al. demonstrate the effects of age on hepatogenesis. In the Sanchez-Hidalgo
experiments, hepatectomies were performed on rat subjects that were
distinguished by age (young at 4-7 months and old at 24-27 months). Regeneration measurements of the liver tissue
were performed by allowing regeneration time of 6 to 48 hours after surgery and
weighing the remaining liver after sacrifice (comparison with estimated starting
liver size). Sanchez-Hidalgo et al.
observed that there was significant impairment of liver regeneration for older
rats versus younger rats.
Age-resistant
regenerative techniques will have considerable impact on the future of medicine
and our perceptions of age. With Dr.
Brann’s research, we understand that a particular part of the mouse’s nervous
system has the capacity to undergo neurogenesis without age playing a factor on
how well this regenerative function is performed. Even though Dr. Brann and Sanchez-Hidalgo both
examined the differences of regeneration of nervous and liver tissue
respectively, they found different results off age-dependent regeneration. If one understood why the effects of the
vomeronasal organ are age-resistant compared to the age-dependent regeneration
of the hepatic tissue or other parts of the nervous system, a potential new
treatment for age-related diseases could be created in order to stop or slow
down the negative impacts of aging. With
that, we would potentially be able to treat age-related disease and our
negative perceptions of old age.
Brann, Jessica H., and Stuart Firestein. "Regeneration
of New Neurons Is Preserved in Aged Vomeronasal Epithelia." The Journal of Neuroscience 30.46 (2010): 15686-94. Web. 10 Dec.
2013
Sanchez-Hidalgo, Juan M., Alvaro Naranjo, Isidora Ranchal,
Patricia Aguilar-Melero, and Gustavo Ferrin. "Impact of Age on Liver
Regeneration Response to Injury After Partial Hepatectomy in a Rat Model." Journal of Surgical Research 175.1 (2012): 1-9. Web. 11 Dec. 2013.
No comments:
Post a Comment