Le cerveau d'une femme de 115 ans - Les mystères du vieillissement

J’ai adore cette histoire trouvée dans The Guardian, (www.guardian.co.uk), un journal anglais, la semaine dernière.

C’est l’histoire d’une femme hollandaise, Henricke Van Andel-Schipper, qui est morte en 2005, à l’âge de 115 ans, d’un cancer de l’estomac. Jusqu’à sa mort, elle a été extrêmement alerte et en pleine possession de ses moyens psychiques et psychologiques. A 82 ans, elle a fait don de son corps à la science. A 111 ans, elle a appelé l’Université de Groningen, Pays Bas, pour être sure que son corps avait de l’intérêt pour la science. Elle a été testée en parfait état à 112 et 113 ans.

Son cerveau a été analysé après sa mort et les résultats seront bientôt publiés dans le numéro d’aout de la revue “Neurobiology of ageing”.

Peut etre son corps aidera-t-il a comprendre pourquoi certaines personnes vieillissent si jeunes et d’autres restent jeunes jusqu’à un age avancé.

“A Dutch woman who appeared mentally sharp up to her death at the age of 115 showed few signs of the diseases commonly associated with declining minds in old age, a study has found.

Henrikje van Andel-Schipper was recognised as the oldest living person in the world before her death from stomach cancer in 2005.

When she was 82, Van Andel contacting the University of Groningen offering to donate her body to science. She called again at 111, worried she might no longer be of interest.

After her death, Professor Gert Holstege, of the university, studied her brain for common signs of ageing such as the hardening of arteries and build-up of proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease.

"Everybody was thinking that when you have a brain over 100 years, you have a lot of problems," Holstege said. "This is the first [extremely old] brain that did not have these problems."

Holstege had tested Van Andel's cognitive abilities when she was 112 and again at 113. Although she had problems with her eyesight, she was alert and performing better than the average 75-year-old.

Dr Murali Doraiswamy, of the Centre for Ageing at America's Duke University, who was not associated with the study, said Holstege's work was unusual and valuable.

"It's very rare to be able to do not only a postmortem, but also be able to have tested her two, three years before she died. For a scientist, getting the opportunity to study someone like that is like winning the lottery."

Holstege's findings will be published in the August edition of Neurobiology of Ageing.”