This Love Your Brain Session by Sandrine Thuret, United Kingdom, was recorded on 9 October 2023 at the 36th ECNP Congress in Barcelona, Spain.
The adult mammalian brain can generate new neurons throughout life via small and sparse populations of neural stem cells that divide and differentiate into neurons. The hippocampus is one of the rare areas of the adult human brain where neurogenesis persists. Research from the Thuret lab shows that hippocampal neurogenesis is implicated in memory formation and mood regulation. The Thuret lab investigates environmental and molecular regulatory mechanisms controlling neural stem cell fate to validate this hippocampal cellular population and neurogenesis as targets for environmental prevention and pharmacological intervention aimed at cognitive decline and mood disorders. They also develop neural stem cell assays as biomarkers of disease prediction and progression.
During this talk, the role of adult hippocampal neurogenesis in memory formation and mood regulation is explored. Environmental and molecular regulatory mechanisms controlling neural stem cell fate are discussed, with evidence showing that this hippocampal cellular population and neurogenesis can be targeted for interventions aimed at cognitive decline and mood disorders. Additionally, data is presented on how monitoring the modulation of hippocampal neural stem cells by the human systemic milieu could be used as a biomarker of cognitive aging and dementia.
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