Superagers show greater neuron growth linked to strong memory

Brains of older adults with super healthy cognition grow more new neurons than those of their peers, according to a study from UIC, Northwestern University and the University of Washington. Researchers found that the brains of superagers - octogenarians with uncommonly nimble minds - were the most neuronally fertile, while those with Alzheimer's disease had negligible new growth.

This is a big step forward in understanding how the human brain processes cognition, forms memories and ages. Determining why some brains age more healthily than others can help researchers make therapeutics for healthy aging, cognitive resilience and the prevention of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia."

Orly Lazarov, professor in UIC's College of Medicine and director of the Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia Training Program

Neurons, or brain cells, support almost every human function. When you wiggle a toe or snap a finger, a neuron zaps a signal from your brain to your nervous system. In the latter half of the 20th century, researchers determined that new neurons could spawn throughout the lifespan in the brain's hippocampus, or memory center - a phenomenon called adult neurogenesis.