Genetic switch makes old mice forgetful

Researchers may have found a clue to age-related memory loss among the coiled strands of DNA in the brain cells of elderly mice. If the process they unraveled also occurs in humans, the discovery could lead to new ways of helping older people remember.

In the new study, researchers found that older mice have less of a kind of genetic packing material that helps strands of DNA involved in the memory formation process spring into action.