AGING
Some animals have a programmed life of growth, reproduction, and death; mayflies and salmon provide commonly known examples. Others seem to continue indefinite slow growth after reaching reproductive maturity, crocodiles, some fish, and lobsters are examples. Warm blooded vertebrates generally cease growth when sexually mature because the growth zones of bones have turned into bone, so growth is limited to adding bulk - something not needed to get through the seasons of reduced food supply now that modern food production and distribution has arrived.
How I Got Interested In The Physiology Of Aging
Along with the natural interest we have about our own life expectancy, I got a boost in my interest during my doctoral research comparing two species of isopods with greatly different life cycles. The ecological factors and adaptive strategies were understandable in explaining the differences.
Less than ten years later I was involved in incorporating new information about the pogonophora in a textbook revision. As mentioned in the previous post about Ocean Circulation, the abyssal ones had life cycles several orders of magnitude longer than terrestrial and shallow water organisms. The most likely cause was an extreme deep-sea pressure affect not likely to be a factor for air-breathing organisms.
WHAT HAS HAPPENED
A lot has happened to about double the global average life expectancy of new-born babies in the last century. Probably the greatest factors have been modern medicine, disease control, care of newborns, care of mothers. Popular papers, magazines, and other sources of health information have been filled with information, much of it worth your time. There does not appear to be a secret food, exercise, or supplement that will answer all your health needs A balanced diet with portion control, reasonable activity, and physician recommended additions may be best in conjunction with.
No smoking
avoids many cancers, emphysema, intolerant non-smokers, and stress on the heart
No, or very moderate alcoholic beverage drinking
may help us avoid cirrhosis of the liver, deposition of excess abdominal fat, falls, accidents, and DUI citations, need to take vitamins and minerals to replace ones missed by less intake of fruits and vegetables
Moderation
in activities and intake of sugars, protein, saturated fat, and total calories - all are better than too much or not enough
Social life, sleep, and mental activity
yes, and you will probably be happier with your extra years
Pick your parents
too late, it doesn't matter as much as our environment. Superb genes will not help if we engage in unnecessary dangerous activity or ignore safety precautions. But don't lament your poor genes, passing on good behavior can be a factor more important in survival of offspring.
STROKES AND HEART ATTACKS
and the mental deterioration we often think comes with old age may be minimized by healthy living and a love for one another. We can be in great health with only minor accumulations of cholesterol induced deposits in blood vessels, but a sudden episode of extreme exertion could cause a few clumps in blood vessels to break free and plug blood flow to areas of the brain or heart, If it hits an unused part of the brain it may be no problem. If it is small enough it may be only a short term minor problem. But don't take the chance if you have been long retired from vigorous activity. Take a smaller shovel full of snow, or don't try to keep up with speedsters; pause and enjoy the beauty of the day, and thank God that there was a time when you could do that.
OTHER POSSIBLE AGING FACTORS
Amino acids are predominately bent in the "l" form and may over time be gradually converted to the "d" form giving rise to no, reduced, or different functionality. The process is probably gradual but may speed up due to radiation or other factors.
Telomeres that terminate the chromosomes may be reduced each cell division and reduce cell replacement in aging organisms.
Accumulation of waste, or other, products in the cells may reduce or eliminate cell function. Some organisms such as some bryozoans may dedicate scattered polyps of the colony as storage sites of waste. We can't do that. But our kidneys do their best to maintain chemical balance in the blood and eliminate many wastes. However some pollutants and toxic substances accumulate over time and are poorly eliminated.
Fat soluble contaminants accumulate in body fat as well as the insulating layer of some nerve cell processes of nerves and the brain. Metallic elements may be retained by combining with body proteins. The cumulative effect of such things may be intensified by weight loss from disease or dieting. Impairment of function of organisms can result from injury and scar tissue.
Evolution and grandparents
Multi-generational families are almost a thing of the past. But they were important in our evolutionary history by
providing child care for young during our long childhood
transferring information prior to written and electronic storage and transfer
source of knowledge and wisdom aiding survival
being the weak prey picked off by predators so others escape
monitoring and alerting
Considering genetic values that might not seem to have selective value until well after reproduction has ceased, such as factors that contribute to post-reproductive longevity, natural selection would still be effective. The genes that may not become active until late in life would be expected to be favored by natural selection as they are almost certain to be more abundant in the reproducing offspring of the ones having genes favorable to aging. It involves the same principle of group selection enabling sterile worker castes of insect to evolve features beneficial to the colony but only expressed in the sterile caste.
The rapid evolution of increased brain size in humans can probably be accounted for by the benefits of greater memory capacity. Large brains of whales and elephants, although not disproportionately large as compared to humans, have a value for retention of migration histories and social behaviors beneficial to the groups survival.
Joseph Engemann Emeritus Professor of Biology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan May 10, 2018
Showing posts with label memory. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memory. Show all posts
Thursday, May 10, 2018
Wednesday, August 2, 2017
SCIENCE: MEMORY
The July, 2017, issue of Scientific American cover featured an article on "Our Memories" by Alcino J. Silva about advances in learning and memory. His lab "had shown that the CREB gene was needed to form long-term memories. . . . . by encoding a protein that regulates expression of other genes needed for memory." The assignment of emotional memories as well as linking of memories are among things discussed.
The July-August, 2017, issue of AARP BULLETIN has a news item about an "electrical brain stimulation" research team, led by Michael Kahana, of "Neuroscientists at the University of Pennsylvania" who "have shown for the first time that stimulating the brain when it's foggy can significantly boost memory function. Conversely, stimulating the brain when it's sharp can impair thinking skills."
Panel discussions on TV news shows remind me of both stimulation and impairment when one persons comments stimulate another to interrupt and make it difficult for the first person to complete their statement clearly.
LINKED MEMORIES
Linked memories are undoubtedly part of the difficulties some veterans with post traumatic stress disorder experience, such as terror-filled memories triggered by loud noises. Emotionally charged memories may be linked with memories formed at the same time and may include visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile stimuli that can later have a role in recollection of the associated memory.
Such linkage may be a factor in the use of mnemonics for remembering sequential or associated items. Since newly forming memories may be linked sequentially in a physical sequence in the brain, activation of one item in the list may aide recovery of others in the sequence. It isn't just harried mothers that use the name of the wrong child and then sometimes go through the list of all their kids before getting the right name. Anyone with an overloaded schedule is likely to do something similar without it being a mental defect.
A BIT ABOUT NERVOUS SYSTEM FUNCTION
The structure of the brain with memory and thinking intensive areas having several layers of neurons, with multiple fibers (dendrites and the axon with its branches) make it practically impossible to map or solve exact storage patterns. The tangle of fibers is only one part of the complexity. At the synapse, or gap at the junction of a fiber with the next neuron, the impulse (depolarization wave) results in the release of a neurotransmitter. There are neurotransmitters with various functions, some that stimulate, some that inhibit, and others with a range of speed of action or persistence.
The neurotransmitter at the neuro-muscular junction is typically acetyl choline. It causes the muscle cell membrane to send a depolarization wave along its length, causing contraction of the muscle. Choline esterase is an enzyme in the gap that breaks down the acetyl choline allowing its constituents to be recycled into acetyl choline in the original fiber. Because neuro-muscular junctions of other animals use the same process some of the most rapid acting insecticides are choline esterase inhibitors. Our large size makes it more likely to kill insects before the concentration we are exposed to kills us. I had a student who would come back for the Fall Semester, after working fogging for mosquito control in Northern Michigan resorts most of the summer, with obvious twitchiness. He survived it and was an effective biology teacher for many years.
MEMORIES, LIES, HONESTY, AND CREATIVITY
I have made the point in an earlier post that honesty is beneficial in developing creativity of a beneficial sort. It may be that a liar has more linked memories on a topic, perhaps half of them untrue. Does it then become impossible for them to distinguish truth from fiction? An hour or so ago a panel on CNN was discussing our president's blend of fact and fiction had an early expression in his noting his marvelous home run to his classmate who reminded him it was just a single. Apparently he was oblivious to the fact and repeated his recollection of his magnificent home run.
Scientists try to be honest and truthful in their work. But complications due to complexity and sometimes relying on opinions of leading scientists, who have unintentionally given erroneous views credibility, can perpetuate and increase errors. My early evolution blogs focused on one particular instance in the calculation of the ancestral tree of animals in which the pogonophora should be recognized as a remarkable link.
IMPROVING MEMORY AND OR RECALL
for memory
Learn a bunch of connected things in uninterrupted fashion.
Multi-tasking is an interruption.
Its all important.
Repetition may help, especially if your mind wandered.
for recall
Activate the appropriate regions of the brain by thinking about related things, locations, functions, people, times.
Be rested, fed, happy and comfortable or relaxed (don't be bothered if it doesn't come immediately)
long-term preparation
Read, listen to music, play games, socialize, exercise, eat a balanced diet, sleep, meditate, appreciate nature and the world around you, and it certainly wouldn't hurt to pray, love God, your neighbors, and yourself.
Joe Engemann Kalamazoo, Michigan August 2, 2017
The July-August, 2017, issue of AARP BULLETIN has a news item about an "electrical brain stimulation" research team, led by Michael Kahana, of "Neuroscientists at the University of Pennsylvania" who "have shown for the first time that stimulating the brain when it's foggy can significantly boost memory function. Conversely, stimulating the brain when it's sharp can impair thinking skills."
Panel discussions on TV news shows remind me of both stimulation and impairment when one persons comments stimulate another to interrupt and make it difficult for the first person to complete their statement clearly.
LINKED MEMORIES
Linked memories are undoubtedly part of the difficulties some veterans with post traumatic stress disorder experience, such as terror-filled memories triggered by loud noises. Emotionally charged memories may be linked with memories formed at the same time and may include visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile stimuli that can later have a role in recollection of the associated memory.
Such linkage may be a factor in the use of mnemonics for remembering sequential or associated items. Since newly forming memories may be linked sequentially in a physical sequence in the brain, activation of one item in the list may aide recovery of others in the sequence. It isn't just harried mothers that use the name of the wrong child and then sometimes go through the list of all their kids before getting the right name. Anyone with an overloaded schedule is likely to do something similar without it being a mental defect.
A BIT ABOUT NERVOUS SYSTEM FUNCTION
The structure of the brain with memory and thinking intensive areas having several layers of neurons, with multiple fibers (dendrites and the axon with its branches) make it practically impossible to map or solve exact storage patterns. The tangle of fibers is only one part of the complexity. At the synapse, or gap at the junction of a fiber with the next neuron, the impulse (depolarization wave) results in the release of a neurotransmitter. There are neurotransmitters with various functions, some that stimulate, some that inhibit, and others with a range of speed of action or persistence.
The neurotransmitter at the neuro-muscular junction is typically acetyl choline. It causes the muscle cell membrane to send a depolarization wave along its length, causing contraction of the muscle. Choline esterase is an enzyme in the gap that breaks down the acetyl choline allowing its constituents to be recycled into acetyl choline in the original fiber. Because neuro-muscular junctions of other animals use the same process some of the most rapid acting insecticides are choline esterase inhibitors. Our large size makes it more likely to kill insects before the concentration we are exposed to kills us. I had a student who would come back for the Fall Semester, after working fogging for mosquito control in Northern Michigan resorts most of the summer, with obvious twitchiness. He survived it and was an effective biology teacher for many years.
MEMORIES, LIES, HONESTY, AND CREATIVITY
I have made the point in an earlier post that honesty is beneficial in developing creativity of a beneficial sort. It may be that a liar has more linked memories on a topic, perhaps half of them untrue. Does it then become impossible for them to distinguish truth from fiction? An hour or so ago a panel on CNN was discussing our president's blend of fact and fiction had an early expression in his noting his marvelous home run to his classmate who reminded him it was just a single. Apparently he was oblivious to the fact and repeated his recollection of his magnificent home run.
Scientists try to be honest and truthful in their work. But complications due to complexity and sometimes relying on opinions of leading scientists, who have unintentionally given erroneous views credibility, can perpetuate and increase errors. My early evolution blogs focused on one particular instance in the calculation of the ancestral tree of animals in which the pogonophora should be recognized as a remarkable link.
IMPROVING MEMORY AND OR RECALL
for memory
Learn a bunch of connected things in uninterrupted fashion.
Multi-tasking is an interruption.
Its all important.
Repetition may help, especially if your mind wandered.
for recall
Activate the appropriate regions of the brain by thinking about related things, locations, functions, people, times.
Be rested, fed, happy and comfortable or relaxed (don't be bothered if it doesn't come immediately)
long-term preparation
Read, listen to music, play games, socialize, exercise, eat a balanced diet, sleep, meditate, appreciate nature and the world around you, and it certainly wouldn't hurt to pray, love God, your neighbors, and yourself.
Joe Engemann Kalamazoo, Michigan August 2, 2017
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