Louisiana researchers are testing estrogen’s potential use in preventing women’s cognitive decline later in life. So far, it appears that short-term estrogen use, in middle age, leads to improved brain health long after use ends.
The research is being led by Tulane University Professor of Brain Science, Jill Daniel, PhD. A key focus of the work is the hippocampus, a brain area critical for memory formation and particularly vulnerable to aging. As a university statement explains, Daniel’s team is investigating “neuroestrogens,” estrogen produced by brain cells. Initial results indicate this estrogen therapy can potentially maintain higher levels of these neuroestrogens throughout aging.
Such success, Dr. Daniel contends, may help compensate for the loss of ovarian estrogens. As reported by the Louisiana Radio Network (LRN) this week, estrogen treatments could prove beneficial during menopausal hormone therapy in women, especially when you consider that current recommendations have suggested limited use of estrogen during the menopausal transition.
Daniel says they are using rodents to test their theory. “If a woman is healthy going into her 50s, the thought is that estrogen will be neuro-protective and will be beneficial for brain health.” And Daniel says giving the rodents the equivalent of three to five years of estrogen, produce long-term lasting impacts on memory and brain aging.
To continue her research, Daniel has been awarded a grant of $2.69 million from the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health. Daniel’s broader research aims to understand how estrogens and androgens impact areas of the brain important for cognition across the lifespan.
