Drainage of cerebrospinal fluid from the brain into the body is reduced with age. The known pathways become impaired. Firstly, drainage holes in the cribriform plate behind the nose ossify and close up. Secondly the glymphatic system that carries away fluid from the brain loses lymphatic vessel density and vessel function. The outcome of reduced fluid flow leaving the brain is that metabolic wastes build up, causing inappropriate changes in cell behavior, including an increase in inflammatory signaling produced by the innate immune cells ca…
Human Glymphatic Function Declines with Age, Correlates with Cognitive Decline
Drainage of cerebrospinal fluid from the brain into the body is reduced with age. The known pathways become impaired. Firstly, drainage holes in the cribriform plate behind the nose ossify and close up. Secondly the glymphatic system that carries away fluid from the brain loses lymphatic vessel density and vessel function. The outcome of reduced fluid flow leaving the brain is that metabolic wastes build up, causing inappropriate changes in cell behavior, including an increase in inflammatory signaling produced by the innate immune cells ca…