Brain Health

Scientists Discover Brain Aging Protein FTL1 and How to Reverse Memory Decline

Scientists at UC San Francisco discovered that a protein called FTL1 drives brain aging and memory decline. In aging mice, higher FTL1 levels weakened neural connections in the hippocampus and impaired memory. When researchers increased FTL1 in young mice, their brains aged prematurely. Most remarkably, reducing FTL1 in older mice reversed the damage - neural connections rebuilt and memory performance improved. The protein also affects cellular metabolism, and boosting energy production prevented FTL1's negative effects. This breakthrough, published in Nature Aging, offers hope for future treatments targeting brain aging.