Yaakov Stern: Cognitive Reserve and Individual Differences in Brain Aging and Alzheimer’s Risk
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Release Date: 04/24/2024
John Cryan: Gut Microbiome – Brain Communication in Health and Disease
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Bacteria in the gut play essential roles in the metabolism of dietary nutrients. But a recent explosion of research has revealed influences of microbes in the gut on brain function in health and in anxiety disorders, depression, and possibly Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. Professor John Cryan at University College in Cork Ireland is at the forefront of this research. In this episode I talk with John about how diet and lifestyle affect the gut microbiome and the mechanisms by which these microbes can affect brain health. Those mechanisms include roles for the vagus nerve and...
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David Nutt: The Drug Science – Drug Regulation Disconnect and Its Impact on Individuals and Society
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
David Nutt has made major contributions to understanding mechanisms by which psychoactive drugs affect the brain and has conducted numerous clinical trials of a wide range of drugs in patients with various mental disorders. He has also been an outspoken critic of the disconnect between drug science and government drug policies. For example, alcohol is legal, widely available, and causes tremendous harm to individuals and society. On the other hand psychedelics are illegal and yet very safe and can be very beneficial for mental health. In this episode I talk with Professor Nutt...
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Yaakov Stern: Cognitive Reserve and Individual Differences in Brain Aging and Alzheimer’s Risk
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Some elderly individuals remain cognitively ‘sharp as a tack’ despite the accumulation of large amounts of amyloid in their brains, whereas others exhibit profound cognitive impairment with less amyloid pathology. In this episode Columbia University Professor Yaakov Stern talks about the concepts of ‘cognitive reserve’ and ‘brain maintenance’ and how he and others have elucidated factors that explain individual differences in cognitive trajectories during aging. The data show that regular exercise and intellectually challenging endeavors promote successful brain aging in the...
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Anna Borghi: Embodied Cognition, Inner Speech, Language, and Abstract Concepts
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
What are the foundational principles by which acquired information is organized and processed in the human brain? In this episode University of Rome Professor Anna Borghi talks about several prominent working theories of cognition including embodied cognition (interactions with objects and other people), inner speech, and abstract concepts. She talks about how language is a prominent feature of these theories and the methods used to test these theories. We also touch on evolutionary and developmental perspectives that help explain these cognitive abilities. LINKS The embodied mind...
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David Menon: Reducing the Burden of Traumatic Brain Injuries by Improving Recovery
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Traumatic brain injuries (TBI) are a major cause of long-term disability and burden on families and health care systems. University of Cambridge Professor David Menon is a leader in global efforts to better understand and treat TBI. In this episode Dr. Menon talks about what happens to neurons, glial cells, and blood vessels in the brain after a TBI. He explains risk factors for TBI, how patients with TBI are currently evaluated and treated, and emerging therapeutic interventions to enhance their recovery. LINKS Review articles on TBI...
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Martin Picard: Mitochondrial Psychobiology, Neuroplasticity, Stress, and Brain Health
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Mitochondria are best known as the powerplants within cells. But recent research is revealing that mitochondria play fundamental roles in regulating the structure and function of neuronal networks and the behaviors that those networks control. Martin Picard directs the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Group at Columbia University. In this episode I talk with Dr. Picard about: the biogenesis and movement of mitochondria within cells, the disposal of damaged mitochondria, the diversity of mitochondria within and amongst neurons in the brain, how this diversity contributes to neuroplasticity, and how...
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Charles Nemeroff: Understanding, Preventing, and Treating Depression in the Digital Age
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Approximately 20 percent of people in the USA will experience clinical depression during their lifetime and there has been a recent surge in depression and suicide among teenagers and young adults. The early life environment plays a major role in one’s vulnerability to depression with childhood maltreatment greatly increasing the risk. Recent research suggests that use of social media is a risk factor. In this episode I talk with psychiatrist/neuroscientist Charles Nemeroff about the neurobiology of stress and depression and interventions to prevent and treat depression. He is a professor of...
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Long-Jun Wu: Microglia and Their Roles in Neuroplasticity, Chronic Pain, Brain Injury, and Disease
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Historically, microglia were viewed only as the brain’s immune cells that respond to brain injury or infections. While this is true, recent research has shown that microglia play important roles in responding to and regulating neuronal network activity, and adaptations of the brain to physiological challenges such as exercise and intellectual challenges. Microglia are increasingly recognized for their roles in neuroplasticity including learning and memory and regulation of emotions. Professor Long-Jun Wu is working at the forefront of research on microglia and their roles in normal...
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Alvaro Pascual-Leone: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation for Brain Disorders in the Digital Age
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technology that enables stimulation (or inhibition) of specified neuronal networks in the brain. In this episode Alvaro Pascual-Leone, a Professor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School, talks about the principle and practice of TMS and its use for the treatment of a range of brain disorders including depression, stroke, and cognitive impairment, chronic pain, and traumatic brain injuries. The technology has advanced to a point where portable in-home devices can be used for treatments under the supervision of medical experts....
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Dena Dubal: Longevity Factor Klotho, Cognition, Brain Aging, and Alzheimer’s Disease
Brain Ponderings podcast with Mark Mattson
In 1997 Makoto Kuro-o and his colleagues reported that they had accidentally discovered a gene that encodes a protein that slows aging and extends the lifespan of mice. They named the protein ‘Klotho’ after the Greek goddess that ‘spins the thread of life’. During the past decade University of California San Francisco professor Dena Dubal has shown that Klotho can enhance learning and memory and protect neurons and synapses aging dysfunction and degeneration in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. Klotho production is increased by exercise and intermittent fasting. In this episode...
info_outlineSome elderly individuals remain cognitively ‘sharp as a tack’ despite the accumulation of large amounts of amyloid in their brains, whereas others exhibit profound cognitive impairment with less amyloid pathology. In this episode Columbia University Professor Yaakov Stern talks about the concepts of ‘cognitive reserve’ and ‘brain maintenance’ and how he and others have elucidated factors that explain individual differences in cognitive trajectories during aging. The data show that regular exercise and intellectually challenging endeavors promote successful brain aging in the absence or presence of Alzheimer’s disease pathology. We also discuss neural mechanisms that may explain cognitive reserve and brain maintenance during aging.
LINKS:
Professor Stern’s webpage at Columbia University:
https://www.neurology.columbia.edu/profile/yaakov-stern-phd
Review articles on cognitive reserve and brain maintenance:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3507991/pdf/nihms416640.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8517622/pdf/acab049.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6859943/pdf/nihms-1530897.pdf