The Scary Link Between Our Molecular Clocks and Alzheimer’s

When it comes to anti-aging science and research, there’s probably no topic more interesting than telomeres. There are caps at the end of chromosomes that act like the plastic bit at the end of a shoelace—keeping our genetic material from getting frayed or tangled. As we age and our cells divide again and again, however, telomeres get shorter and shorter each time. This shortening has been linked to dementia and other age-related conditions. That’s why some call telomeres our “molecular clocks,” ticking down until the inevitable.

Now researchers believe that shorter telomeres have been linked to signs of Alzheimer’s in brain scans. In a new study published Wednesday in the journal PLOS ONE, British scientists at the University of Oxford compared the length of telomeres to MRI scans of participants’ brains. They discovered that scans with longer telomeres typically showed healthier brains.

The findings suggest that the faster a brain ages, the shorter telomeres become. This link could potentially lead to the development of treatments for age-related neurodegenerative issues such as dementia and Alzheimer’s—but, interestingly, not stroke or Parkinson’s disease.

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