Chemical can slow memory By Kathleen Fackelmann, USA TODAY An
immune system chemical that makes it hard to concentrate during
a bout with the flu might contribute to the slowdown of the
brain starting in middle age or later in life, a study suggests.
The immune system chemical in question is interleukin-6, or
IL-6. Immune cells release IL-6 and other so-called cytokines
when the body is battling the flu or an infection, says
University of Pittsburgh researcher Anna Marsland. Those
cytokines tell the brain to slow down, and that helps the body
heal. But as people enter midlife, they start to develop chronic
disorders such as heart disease that keep cytokines elevated all
the time. Marsland's research suggests that a 24/7 elevation in
these cytokines can lead to sluggish performance on thinking and
memory tests. Marsland recruited 500 healthy middle-aged people
and measured levels of IL-6 in the blood. The team gave the
recruits tests that measured cognitive skills and the ability to
remember things. For exampl