In this edition of the Healthspan Insider, Melbourne Functional Medicine’s Mark Payne reviews new research shaping longevity and health optimisation. Discover how gut-brain signalling shapes memory decline, effort rewires dopamine-driven motivation, sleep loss disrupts brain reset cycles, and emerging lipid signals target senescent cells – to guide your personal optimisation journey.
Neurotraining strengthens ageing brains, nattokinase reshapes arteries, hope drives resilience
In this edition of the Healthspan Insider, Melbourne Functional Medicine’s Mark Payne highlights new research shaping longevity and health optimisation. Discover how neurotraining boosts ageing brains, high-dose nattokinase supports artery health, and hope strengthens resilience – plus emerging insights into vaginal microbiome diagnostics to guide your personal optimisation journey.
Future-proof your brain: strategies for cognitive clarity and longevity
Your brain is built to adapt, but modern life makes it harder than ever. With constant stimulation and stress, focus and clarity often fade. Learn how to reset your brain’s resilience with science-backed strategies to boost performance, sharpen thinking, and stay mentally strong for decades to come.
Plastics interact with Alzheimer’s genes, exosomes reflect age, diet and immune tools protect brain
In this edition of the Healthspan Insider, Melbourne Functional Medicine’s Mark Payne reviews new research shaping the future of longevity and optimisation. Discover how diet, immune signalling, microplastics, and digital biomarkers influence brain health, ageing, and performance – and how to apply these findings to your own optimisation journey.
The role of optimal hydration in cognition and focus
Struggling with brain fog, poor focus, or that 3 pm crash? Hydration might be the key. Discover how the right balance of water and electrolytes can sharpen memory, lift mood, and keep your energy steady all day.
Creatine benefits beyond the gym: Brain, bones, and better ageing
Creatine is fast becoming a must-have for health optimisers – fueling sharper thinking, stronger bones, balanced hormones, and better recovery. With standout benefits for women and ageing well, it’s a smart, science-backed upgrade for energy, resilience, and vitality.
How a compact gene editor could transform brain health
A new compact epigenetic editor durably silences genes in the brain by recruiting the body’s own enzymes, offering a safer and more effective approach to treating neurodegenerative diseases.
G4-DNA reveals a new molecular key to memory
Dynamic DNA structure controls memory formation by switching genes on and off. A specific DNA shape, G-quadruplex (G4-DNA), builds up in neurons during learning and regulates memory-related gene activity. Adjusting this structure alters memory formation, highlighting a new molecular mechanism underpinning brain plasticity and cognitive health.
Ageing disrupts brain cell recycling and barrier function
Ageing disrupts vesicle transport in brain endothelial cells, impairing cellular recycling and barrier integrity. This dysfunction, linked to decreased Arf6 protein and increased Apoe cargo, accelerates vascular ageing and may contribute to neurodegenerative decline, highlighting a crucial mechanism in brain health and longevity.
What aged organ transplants reveal about accelerated ageing
Transplanting older organs into younger recipients accelerates physical and cognitive decline by spreading cellular senescence, driven by factors like mitochondrial DNA. Treating donor organs with senolytics before transplantation reduces this impact, offering a promising strategy to improve health outcomes.
