Neuro degeneration involves the progressive loss of nerve structure and function and is a common characteristic of several conditions, including Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Lewy Body disease and Huntington's.
The lead author Dena Dubal said "With our new aging demographic, cognitive dysfunction and lack of mobility are now emerging as our biggest biomedical challenges, and there are no truly effective medical therapies for these debilitating problems."
"Our findings suggest that treatment with a klotho fragment enhances brain function across the lifespan and could represent a new therapeutic strategy to boost brain resilience against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease."
But researchers also said clinical studies would be necessary to determine the safety and effectiveness of injecting klotho in humans.
The body naturally produces a complex hormone that is involved in the multiple cellular processes. It is linked to prolonging life in worms, mice and humans.
In model organisms as well as in humans, klotho levels decrease with age, chronic stress, cerebral aging and neurodegenerative illnesses.
Prior studies had found that life-long exposure to elevated levels of klotho boost mental functions. But it was unclear whether short-term treatment using the hormone could quickly improve cognition.
In this study, a young mouse was treated with the hormone for four consecutive days. It showed markedly improved cognitive function, benefits that lasted more than two weeks. Aging mice showed improvements in just two days following a single shot of the treatment. And several days of the treatment alleviated impairment in mice showing signs of neurodegenerative illnesses.
Dubal said "All of this work is going to teach us something really important about how the body transmits resilience to the brain." He further added "That's where this is taking us.''