WSJ.com: As Early as Age 40, Genes in the Brain Begin to Deteriorate

http://online.wsj.com/article_email/0,,SB108679908876732732-IFjfYNnlaJ3nZytZHSHb6WIm5,00.html

Harvard University researchers found that 20 genes critical for learning and memory begin to decline in function as early as age 40, pointing the way for further research aimed at tackling the mental infirmities that come with growing old.

The Harvard work, released yesterday in the online edition of Nature, is the first major study to use a "genetic signature" to study brain-function decline in normal aging.

A genetic signature is a recent scientific innovation that measures the activity level of thousands of genes -- determining which are working hard, which are minimally active, and which are idle in controlling the production of proteins, which are the main actors in all microscopic bodily functions, including work performed by the brain.

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Great. I'm doomed. My brain is rotting away.