A photo from open sources
No matter how sarcastically it sounds, but thinking seems harmful. Scientists from the Gladstone Institute in California found that the natural process of thinking leads to DNA damage! Than more actively a person uses his neurons, in other words, the more persistent thinks – the more DNA chains are damaged. True, to the rescue repair process comes.
So that thinking can be compared with muscle building in sports: from fiber loads break, but then grow together and grow stronger. Damage in deoxyribonucleic acid cells occur from time and accumulate with age – scientists knew about this fact long. A particularly strong type of damage is double-stranded rupture, with in which both “helices” of the DNA molecule are affected – earlier considered characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, one of common forms of senile dementia (in young people the disorder is extremely rare).
Damage to both strands of DNA in this disease leads to serious consequences for the body – memory impairment, self-awareness and thinking, up to a complete loss of oneself. And suddenly it turns out that a similar double-stranded break occurs then, when we … think!
It’s pretty easy to establish the presence of double-stranded lesions – with them, gamma-H2A.X protein accumulates in the brain. His level indicates the number of “wounded” DNA molecules. What was it astonishment of scientists when the level of gamma-H2A.X is absolutely healthy experimental mice that had to think hard ended up in six times higher than that of the control group. Experimental group rodents were transplanted into new cells.
The room was more spacious than the previous one, with new smells and new toys. As mentioned above, voltage from the development of a new environment has generated double-stranded in the brain of mice DNA breaks. In the control group of rodents, which remained in in old cells, the gamma-H2A.X protein content was six times below.
Its level is especially high, and therefore the amount of damage DNA ended up in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. This structure responsible for spatial memory, which use the mice placed in the new home. It turns out, any processes of memorization and learning are gradually destroying our brain?
It seems that so, scientists answer, but add that along with the destruction of DNA strands should go and the process of their repair: otherwise people with one or two higher educations would have long been mental disabled people. Experts have even suggested that in DNA damage there may be some meaning. Because when remembering a new the material activates the synthesis of certain proteins, damage DNA chains and their recovery can affect gene activity. We may soon find out that the brain “builds strength” just like muscle during sports. Serious stress causes microtrauma – small breaks in muscle fiber, then damaged the tissues are overgrown and thus become thicker.
By the way, scientists have repeatedly cited the comparison of the brain with muscles. TO for example, in 2011 a group of scientists at the University of Massachusetts with colleagues at Harvard School of Medicine found that the “pump” the brain can be through meditation. They are found that meditation for only a couple of months can cause significant changes in the structure of the brain in areas responsible for remembering, self-esteem, empathy and reaction to stress. Using magnetic resonance imaging, researchers scanned the brain of people two weeks before the start of meditation and at the end of an eight-week course. Volunteers were newcomers then have practiced meditation for the first time, and practiced every day about half an hour.
MRI results showed an increase in gray matter mass in hippocampus in the whole group of meditators. Hippocampus (dentate gyrus which, as it turned out, suffers from double-stranded breaks in the process of active thinking) is responsible for the ability to remember and learning, spatial orientation and self-awareness. Decrease gray matter was noted in amygdala symmetrical areas of the brain located deep in the temporal share.
This subcortical structure is responsible for the formation of positive and negative emotions. Various nerves are supposed disorders (phobias, post-traumatic disorder) are associated with malfunctioning tonsils. Gray weight reduction substances in this area for meditating volunteers specialists associated with their newfound ability to control stress and reduced level of aggressiveness. By the way, none of these no changes were recorded in the control group of volunteers, who did not meditate.
Experts also note that the brain develops abilities any new activity because for habitual, brought to semi-automatic action our gray matter uses already “beaten” neural paths, and for new activities the brain has to activate new neural chains. Therefore studying foreign languages, mastering playing unfamiliar musical instruments and even just visiting places you’ve never been to is Great workout for gray matter.
New motor skills, although not considered mental activity, in fact, also develop the brain. Therefore for the development of deeper and more intense thinking can be mastered a new sport or manual labor, or even try to change lead hand – write, draw and brush your teeth with your left hand if you right handed, or right, if vice versa. Yana Filimonova
DNA time
