About regeneration of the brain (Lecture I)

Abstract

The lecture focuses on general issues of brain regeneration in pathological changes related with old age. Similar changes develop in the brain in many common diseases of modern humanity, such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, inflammatory diseases, diabetes, cancer, stroke, sarcopenia, and dementia. In most areas of the brain, postnatal renewal of neurons is absent. In some of these areas, the number of neurons remains unchanged throughout the life whereas in others it decreases. In zones of postnatal neurogenesis, its rate decreases with age. The volume of white matter and diameter of dendrites decrease with the age and progressive demyelination. The number of synapses and stability of synaptic contacts reduce. The rate of gene expression decreases, particularly that of genes responsible for cell-to-cell communication. All of these mechanisms act in one direction, namely, they break the essence of the nervous system, communications. Having decided to launch into such topic as Brain, Old Age, Regeneration, the authors tried to write a clear and interesting lecture for doctors and biologists of any specialty.