Special lipid metabolases may control the development of the body's brain

Neural stem cells are important not only for early brain development, they remain active throughout the body's life, and neural stem cells continue to divide and continuously produce new nerve cells, thus promoting the brain to adapt to different conditions, and multiple genetic mutations can hinder the activity of neural stem cells, which can lead to learning and memory loss in affected individuals, the main molecular mechanisms of which researchers do not yet know.In a recent study published in the international journal Cell Stem Cell, scientists from the University of Zurich and others found for the first time that a lipid metabolic enzyme, a special enzyme called fat acid synthase (FASN, fatty acid synthase), is responsible for the formation of fatty acids, and that special mutations in genetic information of the enzyme induce cognitive loss and damage in patients.In the study, researchers looked at genetic changes in mouse models and FASN in human brain organs, organ-like cultures in the brain that can be formed from brain embryonic stem cells, which could help researchers analyze the effects of FASN deficiency on brain development in adult mice and early humans;Mutations in FASN can cause stem cell division to slow down in mice and human tissues, and over-activity of mutant enzymes may be the cause of this condition, as fat accumulates within cells, leaving stem cells under stress, which in turn reduces the ability of stem cells to divide, and like cognitive impairment in affected human patients, mice exhibit impairments in learning and memory function due to mutations, and the results of this paper reveal a functional link between lipid metabolism, stem cell activity, and cognitive function.In the paper, the researchers reveal how lipid metabolism regulates the activity of neural stem cells and affects brain development, new findings in human learning and memory impairment studies may be achieved through researchers' studies of animal models and human cells, and the new methods used by researchers may reveal the activity of brain stem cells and their key role in cognitive function, while also helping to understand the causes and mechanisms of multiple human diseases. Finally, researcher Sebastian Jessberger said, "In addition, we hope that more in-depth research will be conducted later to control stem cell activity in therapy to help with brain repair, such as future treatments for cognitive impairment and a variety of diseases associated with nerve cell death, including Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease." (Bio Valley Bioon .com)