How long does a neuron live?

If we ask anyone how long a neuron lives, they will probably tell us “not long.” Somehow, Most of us have the idea that brain cells are destroyed over time., and even more so if our lifestyle habits are not appropriate. Factors such as tobacco, lack of exercise, curiosity to learn or poor diet cause their death.

Lorenzo Magrassi, a neurosurgeon at the University of Pavia, revolutionized the world of science almost a decade ago with information. Neurons could live longer infinitely, because the key is in the body that contains them. For example, if we achieved a life expectancy of 150 or 160 years and with good health, they would still be there.

What’s more, we know that when a person dies, they do so with a good part of their neurons intact. In fact, they are still the same ones with which he came into the world. Only when the host organism stops having vital signs do they begin to destroy themselves little by little.. This opens the hypothesis of what may happen in the future.

If we manage to live longer and in good health, the brain would continue to be in optimal conditions to allow us to continue creating, feeling, learning, innovating…

Neuronal death does not occur only due to the aging of the brain.

How long does a neuron live? More than you think…

The neurons in your brain are exactly your age, while the cells in your body are much younger. For example, we know that bone tissue is completely replaced every 10 years and that the skin loses millions of cells a day, but yes, every month we gain a new layer of skin cells.

Something similar happens in the stomach, since it is forced to constantly renew the cells that line it, due to its acidic environment. In essence, the organism shows an enviable cellular youth, thanks to which we carry out basic processes that guarantee our survival. However, The brain retains a part of the neurons with which we enter the world.

They are born when we are born and die when we die. Now, if we digress a little and delve into transhumanist theories, we could ask ourselves the following question: what would happen if we improved our body with bionic technology and managed to cheat death and disease? The answer is simple: our neurons would remain in good condition.

Neurons have no fixed lifespan, they could survive forever

Lorenzo Magrassi is a neurosurgeon at the University of Pavia and author of a 2013 study published in the journal PNAS. In this work, Magrassi emphasizes the idea that The lifespan of a neuron depends on the state of the body that contains it. Their experiments with mice revealed surprising data.

What he did was implant neurons from one mouse brain to another. Not only were they not destroyed with the transplant, but they had a useful life in line with their host. They lived 36 more months, until the mouse died according to its average lifespan.

What Dr. Magrassi pointed out is that, in reality, l Neurons do not have a fixed lifespan, but could live forever if they were in a body with the ideal conditions for it.. That is to say, there is no genetic programming that causes neurons to begin to destroy themselves when they reach an age. It is our lifestyle and diseases that do it.

And what about aging?

If we ask ourselves how long a neuron lives, we already know the answer. On average, a good part of them live the same life as us. They are born and die when each of us does. While it is true that we have all heard of neurogenesis or the ability of certain neurons to regenerate, it should be noted that this happens in few brain regions.

Neuronal regeneration basically appears in the hippocampus, that area specialized in memory and learning, but this is not normal. Now, at this point, more than one may wonder what happens with aging. Isn’t it supposed that as we get older, neurons are destroyed? The truth is that there are nuances.

Researchers from the University of North Carolina explain in a study something that Dr. Magrassi already pointed out. The death of neurons is the result of neurodegenerative disorders such as dementia, also infectious, traumatic, immune and inflammatory disorders.

Diseases associated with aging are those that destroy neurons, but in their absence, they would remain in perfect condition.

How long a neuron lives will depend on our lifestyle… And on science

Indeed, What a neuron experiences is based on aspects that we cannot always control, such as developing a disease. However, it also starts from realities that do depend on us, such as food, physical activity, the will to learn new things, to connect with people…

Likewise, and no less interesting, also Science scrutinizes that desired goal, which is to extend our life expectancy.. The objective will be to live longer, but in good physical condition, avoiding illnesses, ailments and medical conditions of greater or lesser severity. Genetic engineering, biotechnology and medicine join forces for this purpose.

If we manage to live longer, maintaining a healthy and fit body, the brain will remain in the same conditions. Ready to continue conquering dreams.

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