Researchers Find A Way To “Hack” Neurons’ Internal Clocks In Order To Accelerate The Growth Of New Brain Cells
Source-Medical-Xpress Our nervous systems and brains are made up of slowly maturing neurons that take several months to fully mature. Furthermore, although this might be advantageous from an evolutionary perspective, the sluggish pace makes it difficult for the growth of new brain cells in the lab for research on neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Currently, it takes months for nerve cells created from human pluripotent stem cells to mature in the lab; this timetable is similar to the sluggish growth of the human brain. (“Pluripotent stem cells” have the capacity to differentiate into a wide variety of other cell types.) However, a new study out of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre (MSK) has found a technique to “hack” the internal clocks of the cells to expedite the process. Furthermore, the investigation is providing fresh insights into the regulation of the growth of new brain cells. The director of...