As people age, many experience memory decline and slower cognitive processing, along with a higher risk of cerebrovascular disease and cognitive impairment. One important question in aging research is how changes in the brain's blood vessels contribute to cognitive decline.
Scientists from the Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have identified a mechanism by which aging weakens the blood-brain barrier, the brain's protective interface with the bloodstream.
The study was published in Neuron under the title "TGF-β1-induced endothelial transcytosis drives blood-brain barrier leakage during aging."