Mass General researchers have made a key discovery about how the cellular process of autophagy can extend or shorten lifespan.
Mass General researchers have made a key discovery about how the cellular process of autophagy can extend or shorten lifespan.
Studying over 3,000 members of the Framingham, MA, community since 1948, and across multiple generations, we found that people who are the most socially isolated have lower blood levels of a molecule known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (or BDNF) which is critical for keeping brain cells healthy and forming new connections between cells.
In the 12 days leading up to our holiday hiatus, we are looking back on the past year and sharing some highlights in Massachusetts General Hospital research news from each month of 2017.
Mass General geriatric psychiatrist Jennifer Gatchel MD, PhD, is working to unravel the connections between mental illness and the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.
Known as the ‘Alzheimer’s of the eye,’ AMD affects nearly five million people across the world, and is the leading cause of blindness in people over 50 in developed nations.