Although previously it was believed that the brain did not develop any new cells after childhood, recent studies showed that if specific areas of the brain were stimulated, there was a possibility that new cells would form.
In addition, a new study published in the journal Cell Stem Cell showed that neurons (brain cells) were being formed all the time , regardless of the age of the people. In fact, a team of neurologists from the University of Columbia in the United States discovered that the brain does not stop growing and this finding can help treat diseases such as Alzheimer's.
Previously it was thought that mental abilities and memory were associated with age and were due to the loss of neurons, but this new research suggests that these affectations are due to failures in the neurons to communicate appropriately.
An advance to understand other conditions in the mind
With this finding, researchers will be able to study better about dementia and how to prevent it , as neurodegenerative disorders are on the rise.
The experts achieved this finding by observing the hippocampus in 28 healthy individuals between 14 and 79 years old who died suddenly. None suffered from any cognitive deterioration or depression, factors that affect neuronal development.
When studying these bodies, they also realized that more mature brains were still forming neurons until the moment of death.
During this study, newly created neurons and the state of the blood vessels throughout the human hippocampus were seen for the first time after death.