Can Spinal Fluid From the Young Improve Memories in the Old?

A recently published rodent study finds that cerebrospinal fluid from young mice can improve memory function in older mice, probably due the presence of a protein.

It's well-known that memory fades with age. The question is why and whether it can be treated therapeutically. Neuroscientists from Stanford University found that a direct brain infusion of young CSF probably improves the conductivity of the neurons in aging mice, which improves the process of making and recalling memories. They were able to prove this by first exposing the mice to a kind of sound and light show, and then infusing half of the older mice with actual CSF from younger mice, and the other half with artificial CSF. The group that received the real thing performed much better.

The researchers isolated a protein from the CSF fluid that called fibroblast growth factor 17 that they surmise might be helping boost memory function. That is because infusion of the protein had a similar impact as infusing the CSF containing the protein.

You can read more about this research, and its implications for treating memory loss associated with aging, in Nature News and Comment.