UFRJ scientists prove that the stress hormone protects against Alzheimer's disease



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Our body produces irisin during physical activity – and new research indicates that it prevents neurodegenerative diseases and is good for memory

A.J. (19659004)

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Jan 8, 2019, 11:48 – Published Jan 8, 2019, 11:35 am

(Freepik / Freepik)

Regular exercise provides many benefits to our body and to all who know it. . What a new research published this Monday (7) in the Nature Medicine just revealed is a less intuitive badociation. Physical exercise has proven to be a promising ally to prevent the worsening of Alzheimer's disease.

These are the two main conclusions of the study conducted by the biochemist Sergio Ferreira and the neuroscientist Fernanda de Felice, both from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). As part of an extensive survey conducted over the past seven years and involving researchers from several countries, scientists have gathered compelling evidence of the beneficial effects on the brain triggered by the hormone irisine.

This substance is secreted by muscle tissue during exercise. Discovered in 2012 by Bruce Spiegelman, a biologist at Harvard University, Irisin acts as a kind of transmitter of chemical messages of the body's physical activity. Felice and Ferreira, experts in cellular and biochemical alterations caused by Alzheimer's disease, have decided to investigate whether irisin plays a role in the central nervous system. The first step of the research was to compare the level of irisin in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid in four groups: healthy people with moderate memory loss, Alzheimer's disease and d & # 39; 39, other types of dementia.

The blood concentration remained similar but in the fluid, it decreased by half in patients with Alzheimer's disease and dementia, which shows that the change occurred only in the central nervous system, not in the rest of the body. This is what suggested that the stress hormone would have an influence on the functioning of the neurons

To better understand this relationship, the team has conducted a series of experiments. experiments on mice. When rodents were induced to produce less irisin (which was done by injecting into their brain a virus that hinders the manufacture of this hormone), synapses, regions that transmit nerve impulses between neurons have been compromised. And it is precisely the synapse that is directly related to training and memory performance. The protective effect of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease is related to the strengthening of neurons, preventing neurotoxins from connecting to nerve cells and destroying synapses. The next step for researchers is to better understand the mechanisms by which irisin acts on neurons. If new studies prove its effectiveness, the hormone could be included in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and dementia. One more reason to do physical exercise routine.

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