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Nerves

Smoking and ultraviolet radiation end the effects of aging. Credit: The Science website via DALEE

The cause of aging: cumulative damage from factors such as radiation and smoking causes low expression of long genes

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Dutch researchers found that this process happens all the time and damages all genes, but the longer the genes, the more likely they are to be damaged because they have more sites. Especially the great damage is to nerve cells due to their inability to regenerate
Embryonic stem cells. Illustration: depositphotos.com

Going deeper into the roots of the diseases

Researchers have built cellular models of genetic diseases such as fragile X syndrome and found the mechanism that causes them
scientific picture. A XNUMXD model system of human neurons in a dish. In green and purple: nerve cells expressing a protein that is defective in the ubiquitin system. As a result of this expression, the pathology that characterizes Alzheimer's patients is created - the formation of amyloid clusters (in red) outside the cells

Technion researchers have identified the mechanism leading to the formation of protein aggregates involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease

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Toxic proteins accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. In the familial Alzheimer's patients, the accumulation mechanism is clear since there is a circumstantial relationship between the mutations and the identity of the defective proteins. In the random disease, on the other hand, the reason for the accumulation of the defective proteins was unknown
The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration You are here Homepage > Publications > Science news in a friendly language > There is something new under the nerve Share tags Michael Feinzilbermike Feinzilber molecular neurobiology biomolecular sciences nervous system nerve cells communication between nerve cells Like geckos regrowing their tails, the nerve cell extensions in the peripheral nervous system also know how to regenerate after an injury. Unfortunately, the nerve cells of the central nervous system, i.e. the brain and spinal cord, have a much more limited ability to regenerate. Accordingly, diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain, such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and ALS, are irreversible and incurable. What exactly gives the peripheral system - the one that connects the brain and the spinal cord to the body's organs - an increased capacity for regeneration? A new study by Weizmann Institute of Science scientists reveals that a protein, which until now has only been observed during embryonic development, has a key role in the regeneration of mature nerve cells of the peripheral nervous system. When embryonic cells differentiate into adult cells, the composition of the proteins they produce changes. In the case of nerve cells, it was common to think that a decrease in the levels of a protein called PTBP1 in embryonic cells is a key part of their transformation into mature cells of the nervous system. Previous studies have even shown that upon completion of the differentiation process and the transformation of the embryonic cells into mature nerve cells of the central nervous system, the production of the protein stops altogether. In recent years, these findings have led research groups to try to reproduce this process in the laboratory: to lower the PTBP1 protein levels in cells that are not nerve cells and thus produce mature nerve cells from them. The hope was that it would be possible to apply this method to patients with neurodegenerative diseases and to produce new nerve cells for them. From the right: Dr. Rinat Nebo, Dr. Natalya Okladnikov, Dr. Agustina Di Physio, Philip Freund, Dr. Ida Rischel, Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzilber and Pierluigi Di Matteo However, in a new study, led by the researcher PhD candidate Dr. Stephanie Alber and doctoral student Pierluigi Di Matteo from the research group of Prof. Michael (Mike) Feinzylver in the Departments of Biomolecular Sciences and Molecular Neurobiology at the institute, it was surprisingly discovered that the PTBP1 protein is expressed not only in embryonic cells that have not yet undergone differentiation, but also in mature nerve cells - although not nerve cells of the central nervous system, but yes of the peripheral one. The researchers discovered this completely by accident, while studying processes in the sciatic nerve of mice, nerves that leave the spine and reach the foot. The original experiment carried out by the researchers was aimed at finding molecules that regulate the rate of production of another protein called KPNB1 - "postcarriage" - responsible for carrying most of the messages transmitted from the distant extensions of the nerve cells to the cell nucleus. Among its other functions, the KPNB1 protein is responsible for signaling to the cell nucleus that a nerve branch is injured, so that the cell can regenerate it. However, before the mail car can set off and carry messages from the branches to the nucleus, the cell is required to launch messenger RNA molecules that contain the "recipe" for the production of the mail car in the opposite path (from the nucleus to the branches). On the way or when arriving at the destination, other molecules may bind to the messenger, delaying or speeding it up and thus controlling the rate of production of the mail car. The surprising discovery in the new study was that not only was PTBP1 present in the mature cells, but it also bound tightly to the messenger RNA of the mail car. But does and how does it affect its production and the regeneration of nerve cells? "Tens of millions of people around the world suffer from diseases that lead to the degeneration and death of nerve cells in the brain. In order to understand why the central nervous system fails in its attempt to regenerate after an injury, we must first understand how the peripheral nervous system succeeds in doing so." To answer this question, the scientists followed the nerve cells' response to the injury and noticed that after three days the levels of PTBP1 in the cell began to rise and within A week they reached record levels. With the increase in PTBP1 levels, the researchers noticed that the nerve cell extensions begin to regenerate. Sequencing the messenger RNA molecules that bound to PTBP1 after the injury revealed that the protein binds not only to the messenger RNA molecules of the mail car, but also to other proteins that play a role in nerve regeneration. Dr. Stephanie Alber To continue investigating the activity of PTBP1 in adult cells, the researchers removed it from the cells through genetic engineering, and showed that as a result, the regeneration of nerve cells of the "alarm receptor" type - cells whose role is to transmit a sensation of pain in response to a harmful stimulus that could damage the tissue - was impaired. The scientists also examined whether silencing the gene had additional effects and discovered that it increased the sensitivity to mechanical stimuli and heat. In an attempt to deepen the understanding of how PTBP1 affects the regeneration of nerve cells, the researchers examined whether it also affects another protein, RHOA - an important "control switch" in the process of differentiation and regeneration of nerve cells. When the RHOA protein is produced at high levels, it acts as a sort of off switch that inhibits cell growth. The researchers discovered that PTBP1 suppresses the production of the control switch in the extensions of the nerve cells, thus enabling their growth and regeneration. These findings strengthen the possibility that the production of PTBP1 in peripheral nerve cells is what enables their efficient regeneration, unlike in the central nervous system. Sensory neurons of the peripheral nervous system in culture.

There is a new one under the sadness

The molecule that carries with it a message of regeneration
Protein G. Courtesy of Dr. Moshe Ferns, Tel Aviv University

get used to the smell

A story about a protein that doesn't feel electric voltage
Two fruit bats in Australia. Photo: depositphotos.com

When neurons change gears: how the brain copes with sudden changes

New research done in bats reveals far-reaching dynamic capabilities of neural networks
Confocal microscopy image of sensory neurons of the peripheral nervous system in culture (the cells and their extensions are marked in red). You can see in the neurons a combination of colors (blue-red-green) created as a result of marking the cell nuclei in blue and marking the transcription factor c-Fos in green. The scientists discovered that c-Fos is introduced into the nuclei by means of importin alpha-3 (the blue markings around - nuclei of other types of cells that are also in the culture)

A new approach to the development of chronic pain treatment

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Regrowth of nerve cell extensions surrounded by glial cells (cell nuclei are marked in blue), in the sciatic nerve of a mouse, seven days after injury (top) and 25 days after it (bottom). In mice without Silc1 (left column), the restoration is less powerful - the regrown nerve cell extensions (red) are shorter than in mice with an active Silc1 copy. Photographed using a fluorescence microscope

The gene plays a crucial role in nerve cell repair

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In genetically modified mice, which lack the importin alpha-5 protein (right), the MeCP2 molecule (in red), which affects anxious behavior, remains outside the nucleus (in blue) of the nerve cells in the brain, and does not penetrate into it as in normal mice (left). Computer processing of an image that was taken using a confocal microscope. Weizmann Institute

There is no entry for anxiety

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Ado Kanter. Photo: Faith Baginsky.

New research on the way the brain works may help to understand neurodegenerative diseases

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neurons. Illustration: ZEISS Microscopy.

Researchers discovered dopamine-stimulating proteins to treat Parkinson's

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Image: pixabay.

How we link memories to each other and make associations

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The brain of primates has an amazing ability to recognize faces. Researchers are now beginning to crack that code. Illustration: Turinboy.

How the brain recognizes faces

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"Similar to humans, the ability of bats to place others in space is essential for them." Photo: Brooke Fenton.

Me and the Guys: How the Brain Maps Social Space

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How does the brain set limits to memory search? Illustration: pixabay.

How does the brain set limits to memory search?

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The unique view of human brain activity, made possible by this study, reveals how sleep deprivation affects not only decision-making processes and muscle control, but also early processes of object recognition, perception and memory. As such, the study provides a future basis for road fatigue measurement. Illustration: pixabay.

Fatigue slows down brain cell activity

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MRI scan of an ALS patient. Source: Frank Gaillard, Wikimedia.

New drugs for ALS are on their way to clinical trials

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The migration of nerve cells in the brain of mouse embryos: under normal conditions, many cells (white dots) migrate to the upper layer of the cerebral cortex (three pictures on the left), but in the absence of the 3C protein, the cells remain scattered along the migration path (three pictures on the right). Photographed using a confocal microscope. Source: Weizmann Institute magazine.

Dual agents: Immune system proteins help brain development

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Mouse brain viewed from above: nerve extensions connect the two amygdalae (the two brightest areas, on both sides of the brain) and the cerebral cortex (the upper part). Source: from the study.

to illuminate the trauma in a new light

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A general view of nerve fibers stretching from cells in the forebrain of a mouse demonstrates the advantages of the hydrogel method that allows researchers to follow the complex neural wiring. Source: Dysroth Laboratory, Stanford University.

A look into the transparent mind

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Zebrafish brain imaging results. Left: Optical fluorescence microscopy imaging provides only a blurred image limited to the surface. Right: The optoacoustic FONT approach, on the other hand, provides a high-resolution XNUMXD image and detailed information on the activity of the neurons (orange dots) in real time, all over the brain. Photo: Helmholtz Center, Munich.

A window to the depths of the mind

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Dendrites, which are the focus of Prof. Jackie Schiller's and doctoral student Maya Sandler's research. This study, along with other studies by researchers from other research disciplines, demonstrates the in-depth collaboration between researchers to deepen research and development in the field of the brain. Image source: Mathias De Roo / Wikimedia.

Researchers at the Technion are increasing their collaboration to expand research and development in the field of the brain

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How do we know how to locate our nose in space or follow the position of the arm during its movement without the sense of sight?. Photo: Barbara Piuma / Wikimedia.

Knowing where the nose is: the mechanisms of action of the sixth sense

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Zebra fish. Photo: Marrabbio2, Wikimedia.

social switch

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Neurons of a mouse embryo grown in a Petri dish. The axons, the extensions of the nerve cells, are the green extensions in the picture. Source: NIH.

A little less, a little more

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