Researchers showed that inflammation in ageing brains can be helped by administering the protein interleukin-2 (IL2), the Flemish Institute of Biotechnology (VIB) announced in a press release on Wednesday.
The group consisted of researchers from the VIB, KU Leuven, the Babraham Institute and i3S Porto. A growing body of existing research suggests that inflammation in the brain may exacerbate the cognitive decline in brains that occurs as people age.
This inflammation is caused by immune cells entering the brain as people age. It can activate microglia, the resident immune cells in the brain, and cause neuroinflammation, leading to cognitive decline and dementia.
Researchers have now found a way to reduce inflammation in the brain. The research group investigated whether directly administering the protein interleukin-2 (IL2), which normally helps control the immune response, reduced inflammation in mice.
The researchers found that the brain function of ageing mice improved when IL2 was administered. The treated older mice were able to form new memories almost as well as young mice. The mice were also better at remembering visual cues than those that did not receive the IL2 treatment.
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The IL2 protein was administered to the brain using a gene therapy vector, a tool that delivers genetic material to specific cells. "This reinforces our belief that genetic viral vector therapy is the future to combat chronic neurodegenerative diseases and prevent cognitive decline in ageing populations," said Matthew Holt and Lidia Yshii, senior authors of the study.
The study was published in the scientific journal Molecular Medicine.
