Sunday, February 9, 2014

The aging of stem cells can now be prevented

A new study released by researchers at the Molecular Neurobiology Unit of the University of Valencia, led by Professor of Cell Biology Isabel Farinas proves that it is possible to maintain stem cells in the brain that can help in the production of new neurons during lifetime. This study is published in the journal Nature Neuroscience. The group of researchers analyzed the so-called Cdkn1a/p21 and concludes that this gene maintains the stem cells active and functional. If they`re not kept as functional, it will no longer be possible to produce new neurons. The team of Isabel Farinas, in collaboration with the group of Anxo Vidal (University of Santiago de Compostela) analyzed the role of p21 in neural stem cells. Isabel concludes: “The research allows us to understand better how stem cells get lost in our brains as we age, and opens the possibility to try to alleviate this deterioration”.

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