Brain and cerebrovascular aging - New mechanisms and insights

摘要

In recent years a growing number of studies have provided unexpected insights into the cellular and molecular mechanisms of brain aging and the role of aging-induced changes in cerebrovascular function in the decline of higher cerebral function and neurodegeneration. The series of articles that follow in the present issue of Journal of Gerontology: Biological Sciences focus on novel aspects of the relationship between cerebrovascular health and age-related neu-rocognitive decline, review new developments in synaptic biology as they relate to brain aging, describe age-related and region-specific changes in hippocampal gene expression profile and introduce to aging research a novel invertebrate model of age-related cognitive decline providing further support for the evolutionarily conserved beneficial effects of IGF-1 on learning and memory (1-6). Articles published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences focus on clinical aspects of the same topics (7-20).