Dementia: Klotho protein turbocharges brain in old monkeys – and could work in humans too

A drug to boost the brain in old age has come a step closer.

A single injection of a protein called klotho can boost cognitive function in older monkeys, a study finds.

People with high levels of klotho, due to a genetic idiosyncrasy, have better thinking power and are less likely to develop dementia.

But scientists want to understand whether supplementing the protein can help improve thinking skills.

Having previously found that injecting mice with klotho could improve their cognitive function, they have now found the same result in rhesus macaques, which are more human-like and suffer cognitive decline like us as they age.

This raises hopes for klotho, named after the mythological Greek figure Clotho who spun the thread of human life.

Researchers from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) conducted a study with 18 macaque monkeys with an average age of nearly 22 – the equivalent of a 65-year-old person.

They gave a subset of the animals an injection of klotho equal to the level seen in humans at birth.

These monkeys performed better in a test where they had to remember the location of a food treat from up to nine possible locations after a delay of up to 32 seconds.

The study authors conclude: ‘Because klotho levels decrease with aging in humans, our data suggest that a lower dose of klotho (comparable to five times baseline levels and similar to levels observed at birth) may improve cognition in older non- human primates, that peripheral treatment or supplementation with this endogenous hormone may be therapeutic in aging humans.’

Neuroscientist Dr. Dena Dubai, senior author of the study from UCSF, who had studied klotho for years, previously said of its anti-aging potential: “Aging is the biggest risk factor for cognitive problems, and cognitive problems are one of the biggest biomedical problems. challenges we face.

People with high levels of klotho, due to a genetic idiosyncrasy, have better thinking power and are less likely to develop dementia (stock image)

‘Why don’t we just block aging?’

The Japanese researchers called klotho found that the amount produced by mice can affect how long the rodents live.

People with higher levels also live longer.

Klotho is believed to increase brainpower by improving the function of synapses – the openings between brain cells where they “talk” to each other using electrical signals.

In the current monkey study, the boost in cognitive function in monkeys injected with the protein was found to last for at least two weeks.

Neuroscientist Dr. Dena Dubai, senior author of the study from UCSF, who has studied klotho for years, said: ‘Cognitive impairment is a problem in aging and dementia, which can affect our language, memories and the very essence of who we are.

‘But these results suggest that klotho could be a treatment that could really work in humans, to keep our brains healthy in old age.

“We urgently need clinical trials to see if that’s the case.”

WHAT IS DEMENTIA?

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of neurological conditions

A WORLDWIDE CARE

Dementia is an umbrella term used to describe a range of progressive neurological conditions (affecting the brain) that affect memory, thinking, and behavior.

There are many forms of dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease being the most common.

Some people have a combination of different forms of dementia.

Regardless of which type is diagnosed, each person experiences dementia in their own unique way.

Dementia is a global problem, but it is most common in wealthier countries, where people are likely to live very old.

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED?

The Alzheimer’s Society reports that there are more than 900,000 people living with dementia in the UK today. This is expected to rise to 1.6 million by 2040.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting between 50 and 75 percent of those diagnosed.

There are an estimated 5.5 million Alzheimer’s patients in the US. A similar percentage increase is expected for the coming years.

As a person’s age increases, so does the risk of developing dementia.

The rate of diagnoses is improving, but many people with dementia are thought to remain undiagnosed.

IS THERE A MEDICINE?

Currently, there is no cure for dementia.

But new drugs can slow its progression, and the sooner it’s caught, the more effective treatments can be.

Source: Alzheimer’s Association