An HIV drug can reverse memory loss in old mice. Humans can do things like associate a name with a face if they have this type of memory.
AYESHA RASCOE is the host.
There is a drug used to treat HIV/AIDS. It seems to be able to reverse a form of memory loss. The findings suggest a new approach to treat brain changes associated with aging or disease.
There is an interview with NPRBROADCAST.
New memories can be formed as a brain gets older, but it has trouble linking them together. The problem is explained this way by Alcino Silva.
You learn about something but can't remember where you heard it. You don't recall who told you about it. As we get older, these incidents occur more and more.
Scientists have known that for a long time, according to Silva.
We do not know how the brain does this.
Silva's lab was studying a molecule that helps the brain separate recent memories from old ones. Silva didn't think that this molecule could be involved in memory problems associated with aging.
We checked. And that's it.
The process that helps us do things like link a name and face starts to interfere with us as we get older.
You can't link memories after that because the molecule turns off memory mechanisms.
Silva's lab showed that it could be done in mice, but they wanted to do it in people as well.
There is an FDA approved drug.
There's a drug called Maraviroc in Hamilton. HIV can enter immune cells if it is blocked.
This drug was taken by us. The drug gave you the same effect as we gave the middle-age animals. There was a restoration of memory linking.
The results are limited to mice but they hold promise for older people and stroke patients. A few years ago, Silva and Dr. Thomas Carmichael did a study that showed a big increase in the level of CCR5. The system that helps brain cells survive is activated by this.
The problem is that when the systems stay active, they limit the ability of the brain cells to recover.
The cells can't form the new links that are needed to carry out certain tasks. The mice who got Maraviroc recovered quicker. The team found that stroke patients with low levels of CCR5 recovered quicker. A drug like Maraviroc may be able to help people with a wide range of brain problems.
You might have an effect on Alzheimer's disease, stroke and Parkinson's.
People who have had a stroke are being studied by a team of researchers. Jon Hamilton is a reporter for NPR.
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