- Researchers investigated the cellular mechanisms behind how exercise improves cognition.
- They found that contracting muscle cells release chemical signals that increase neuronal growth and firing.
- They also found that support cells known as astrocytes prevent neurons exposed to chemical signals from muscle cells from excessive electrical signaling.
- Further studies are needed to see whether these findings apply to humans.
Exercise is key for
Some suggest that exercise improves cognition by
Understanding more about how exercise increases hippocampal size and function could allow researchers to reverse-engineer treatments for cognitive conditions such as dementia.
Recently, researchers conducted a series of in vitro experiments — experiments in cell cultures — to understand how exercise changes hippocampal cells.
They found that chemical signals from contracting muscle cells caused hippocampal cells to grow and fire more electrical signals. They also found that support cells known as astrocytes regulate neuronal growth and activity for optimum brain function.
“The implications support prior findings from other studies, which is that exercise, including muscle-strengthening exercises such as resistance training, can have a positive impact on brain function,” Ryan Glatt, senior brain health coach and director of the FitBrain Program at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, CA, not involved in the study, told Medical News Today.
The study was published in Neuroscience.
For the study, the researchers isolated small muscle precursor-cell samples from mice and grew them in Petri dishes. Once they matured, they began to contract and release chemical…
Read the full article here