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Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

nih.gov

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Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#21

Post by didibus »

ars wrote: post #4
ruytlm wrote: post #2

Interesting stuff, though I could have sworn I'd seen something similar before, to do with the waste draining being one of the reasons we need sleep (i.e. the body needs time to drain the accumulated waste products). Anecdotally, whenever I've had that droopy-eyelids nodding off sensation, when it passes it has always felt like the tiredness is literally draining from my brain.

> being one of the reasons we need sleep Jellyfish have no brain, but also sleep. So that can't be the reason. (It might happen then anyway, but it's not the fundamental reason.)

I thought they did have a brain, it was just spread out through their whole body.

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#22

Post by manmal »

ggm wrote: post #11

Am I alone in finding it stunning that it's 2017 and we can still discover new anatomy? How can this not have been (re)discovered?

I agree. I thought we were past that point of figuring out the structural parts. To me, the most interesting things are metabolic pathways, which are incredibly complex, photobiomodulation (effects of eg near infrared light), and electromagnetism (eg electrolyte channels can be triggered by em radiation). But knowledge about this lymph system in the brain could prove SO useful for so many disorders. If eg bodyweight set points are modulated by inflammation in the hypothalamus, would this not in some way be affected by the lymph system?

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#23

Post by wiz21c »

robbiep wrote: post #20
wiz21c wrote: post #19

Can this mean that if one has a lot of stress, then its brain makes a lot of waste which pollute the lymph and thus affects the immune system ? ('cos it's well known that stressed people get sick quicker)

Stress is a factor of hormones and metabolic factors. Brain has constant metabolic consumption whether awake or asleep. Endocrine functions of brain are carried out by release of hormones directly into portal (venous) systems. Intracellular adenosine which builds up over the course of waking day may be uptaken by brain lymphatics but would play a small part if they are inside the dura as this states. In fact, given c…

D*mn, that's what I call an answer. Thank you very much !

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#24

Post by kensai »

This one, together with the original rodent observation in 2015, is one of the few "macroscopic" observations in anatomy the last decades. Since most of the details of human and higher mammal anatomy have already been described, it is rather rare and outstanding to make such new, remarkable observations.

PS: I work in an Anatomy Department.

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#25

Post by indubitable »

ggm wrote: post #11

Am I alone in finding it stunning that it's 2017 and we can still discover new anatomy? How can this not have been (re)discovered?

Looking at this abstractly, there is a fun quote from Albert Michelson in 1894:

"While it is never safe to affirm that the future of Physical Science has no marvels in store even more astonishing than those of the past, it seems probable that most of the grand underlying principles have been firmly established and that further advances are to be sought chiefly in the rigorous application of these principles to all the phenomena which come under our notice. It is here that the science of measurement shows its importance — where quantitative work is more to be desired than qualitative work. An eminent physicist remarked that the future truths of physical science are to be looked for in the sixth place of decimals."

Albert Michelson is the Michelson of the Michelson-Morley experiment that showed that the speed of light was identical from all perspectives - a discovery that was soon to completely revolutionize our understanding and notion of physics. The comment was also made shortly before quantum mechanics would really begin to be delved into, further revolutionizing physics.

We only know what we know. And that's all we know - until we know more. In the case of the brain in particular we have practically zero causal and holistic understanding. And much of what we do know has been driven by pharmacological profit motive, which doesn't necessarily yield the most objective science and certainly constraints it in any case. Ultimately, I'd be rather more surprised if there are not a vast number of fundamental discoveries yet to be made!

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#26

Post by tim333 »

ruytlm wrote: post #6
amacbride wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're probably thinking of the so-called "glymphatic system" that was in the news a few years back. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glymphatic_system

Yep, that's exactly the one I was thinking of. Thank you!

See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebrospinal_fluid#Circulatio...

with a nice MRI of fluid being pumped around. Though I think a different system to the one in this article.

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#29

Post by mysterypie »

> the team discovered lymphatic vessels in the dura, the leathery outer coating of the brain

Can someone explain why these vessels were never discovered during autopsies until now? Are they too thin, or transparent, or thought to have been something else, or the tubes become squished after death and therefore difficult to separate from other tissue, or what?

Re: Evidence of the body’s waste system in the human brain

#30

Post by blubb-fish »

This is very interesting for martial arts practitioners. It's highly plausible that this waste system is the missing link between Parkinson and Alzheimer and concussions due to head strikes. I'd assume that a strike to the head will - if severe enough - first impair the dura mater. This might impair the waste system and by that facilitate inflammations in the long run.
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