"Strategies for studying sex differences in brain aging" http://dlvr.it/TPHP3x @bbparis1984.bsky.social @suhlab-aging.bsky.social @ctmurphy1.bsky.social @denadubal.bsky.social & colleagues @cp-trendsgenetics.bsky.social #SfN2025
Dena Dubal
@denadubal.bsky.social
Neuroscientist, Neurologist, and Aging Researcher at UCSF
✨Registration is OPEN for the 2026 FASEB on Epigenetics in Aging and Disease in Malahide, Ireland!✨ Featuring @denadubal.bsky.social and Yang Shi from @ludwigcancer.bsky.social as Keynotes. Speaker slots available! With: @bbparis1984.bsky.social Ashby Morrison, Ernesto Guccione
Five years ago Sam Dubal ascended - into the arms of the Mother Mountain. So blessed to have been the sister of this surgeon-anthropologist with a gentle heart and fierce mind. He was shifting paradigms toward a better world - with that unassuming smile.
Today, I had an amazing, unexpected surprise. My big sister came to UC Irvine and sat in on my lecture! It was an amazing, memorable moment. I’ll never forget it. 😭❤️ love you @denadubal.bsky.social
The Wall Street Journal recently highlighted AFAR grantees @denadubal.bsky.social, @jennifergarrison.bsky.social and @jamienjustice.bsky.social in a feature on pioneering women advancing aging research. Read the full article here: www.wsj.com/health/welln...
📣 We are thrilled to announce @denadubal.bsky.social is joining our Executive Committee! Dr. Dubal's research investigates the molecular mechanisms of #aging, #resilience, and #neurodegenerative_disease. #SciSky #GeroSky
We celebrated with chocolate, stories and tacos! Congrats Samira @jusabdulsam.bsky.social on starting the next chapter of your scientific journey as you set up your own lab at @templeuniversity.bsky.social @ucsfhealth.bsky.social @simonsfoundation.org
With gratitude for the Pignolo Prize in Aging Research from UPENN @upenn.bsky.social . Thanks David Wok, Edward Lee, John Pignolo, Virginia Lee - and others. Wonderful occasion!
"We have far to go and more to do" - thanks Katherine Bourzac @bourzac.bsky.social at @nature.com for including me in this thoughtful piece and highlighting our work on the X chromosome. Why women experience #Alzheimer’s disease differently from men www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Why women experience Alzheimer’s disease differently from men
Sex and gender research could lead to better, more equitable treatments — if it is allowed to continue without political interference.
nature.com
Could a reawakening of the silenced X chromosome in females help slow aging-induced cognitive decline? Check out the work by @denadubal.bsky.social along with colleagues Kaitlin Casaletto, Bérénice Benayoun, and Vijay Ramani in Science Advances: bit.ly/3FlN3hj #GeroSky #SciSky
Aging activates escape of the silent X chromosome in the female mouse hippocampus
Aging activates the silent X chromosome, increasing escape expression, and potentially cognitive resilience, in the female mouse.
science.org
"A little boost went a long way". Increasing an X factor from the silent X improved cognition in aging male and female mice. Privileged to have our discovery reported in @nytimes.com, alongside findings from Kaitlin Casaletto and Rachel Buckley @bucklr01.bsky.social. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/05/h...
Aging Women’s Brain Mysteries Are Tested in Trio of Studies (Gift Article)
Researchers identified a gene that seems to help slow brain aging in women, and studied links between hormone therapy, menopause and Alzheimer’s.
nytimes.com
Thanks Katherine Bourzac @bourzac.bsky.social for this terrific article in @nature.com on our discovery that the "silent X awakens"!
Nature@nature.com · last yr.“It’s a paradigm shift to know that the silent X doesn’t stay asleep,” says Dena Dubal, a neuroscientist and neurologist at the University of California School of Medicine in San Francisco, who led the study. https://go.nature.com/4ksThvP
"We could all use a little more X!" Thrilled our new study is out. Aging "wakes up" the silent X chromosome in the female brain - and this contributes cognitive resilience. Spearheaded by @margaretgadek.bsky.social in Science Advances. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Aging activates escape of the silent X chromosome in the female mouse hippocampus
Aging activates the silent X chromosome, increasing escape expression, and potentially cognitive resilience, in the female mouse.
science.org
Thanks to @denadubal.bsky.social and @bucklr01.bsky.social for talking to me for this story about the fascinating X chromosome!
Nature@nature.com · last yr.“It’s a paradigm shift to know that the silent X doesn’t stay asleep,” says Dena Dubal, a neuroscientist and neurologist at the University of California School of Medicine in San Francisco, who led the study. https://go.nature.com/4ksThvP
Our new Science Advances paper reveals activation of the silent X chromosome as a mechanism of female resilience in cognitive aging www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... Many thanks to @denadubal.bsky.social for your mentorship on this project!!
Aging activates escape of the silent X chromosome in the female mouse hippocampus
Aging activates the silent X chromosome, increasing escape expression, and potentially cognitive resilience, in the female mouse.
science.org
Excited to share our new review article in @cp-trendsgenetics.bsky.social together with the labs of @denadubal.bsky.social, @ctmurphy1.bsky.social and #YousinSuh, spearheaded by trainees Victor Ansere, Seung-Soo Kim, Francesca Marino and Katherine Morillo! 🧪🧬🖥️ www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
More coverage of @denadubal.bsky.social Kaitlin Casaletto, @bucklr01.bsky.social et al: www.nytimes.com/2025/03/05/h...
Aging Women’s Brain Mysteries Are Tested in Trio of Studies
Researchers identified a gene that seems to help slow brain aging in women, and studied links between hormone therapy, menopause and Alzheimer’s.
nytimes.com
Wonderful talking with Mohana Ravindranath @ravindranize.bsky.social for her compelling article – Why do Women Live Longer than Men? Input from @bbparis1984.bsky.social and others @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/02/25/w...
nytimes.com
Why do women’s brains age better than men’s? A new Simons Foundation–funded @nature.com study from @denadubal.bsky.social identifies a key player: the X chromosome. Read more: www.simonsfoundation.org/2025/02/05/n... #science #neuroscience
New Research Identifies a Key Player in How Your Brain Ages: The X Chromosome
New Research Identifies a Key Player in How Your Brain Ages: The X Chromosome on Simons Foundation
simonsfoundation.org
New research by AFAR Grantee @denadubal.bsky.social of @ucsfhealth.bsky.social recently published in @nature.com on the maternal X chromosome and cognition and brain aging in female mice.
Dena Dubal@denadubal.bsky.social · 2y agoThe maternal X chromosome impairs cognition and speeds up brain aging. Check out our latest @nature.com @ucsfhealth.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
👏 Don't miss Samira Abdulai-Saiku's manuscript published in @nature.com! Great work coming from @denadubal.bsky.social's lab, furthering our understanding of the relationship between the X chromosome and brain aging. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
The maternal X chromosome affects cognition and brain ageing in female mice - Nature
The maternal X chromosome in female mice impairs cognition through the silencing of certain genes and accelerates ageing of the hippocampus.
nature.com
Older female mice show poor spatial memory when their paternal X chromosome is inactive and only the maternal copy is active @nature.com @denadubal.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/d41... www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Beautiful study from @denadubal.bsky.social and #SamiraAbdulaiSaiku showing that the parent-of-origin of the active X in mice play a huge role in #brain aging!!!! Congrats on this transformative work!
Dena Dubal@denadubal.bsky.social · 2y agoThe maternal X chromosome impairs cognition and speeds up brain aging. Check out our latest @nature.com @ucsfhealth.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
Is brain aging mom's fault? When brain cells rely only on X chromosomes inherited from mom, they age more quickly, UCSF researchers led by @denadubal.bsky.social reported in @nature.com. Reversing the effect could help treat brain diseases or memory loss. www.ucsf.edu/news/2025/01...
Could Brain Aging Be Mom’s Fault?
Researchers found that female mice using only maternal X chromosomes showed faster cognitive decline, which could help explain the variation in brain aging between the sexes
ucsf.edu
The maternal X chromosome impairs cognition and speeds up brain aging. Check out our latest @nature.com @ucsfhealth.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41... www.nature.com/articles/d41...
The maternal X chromosome affects cognition and brain ageing in female mice - Nature
The maternal X chromosome in female mice impairs cognition through the silencing of certain genes and accelerates ageing of the hippocampus.
nature.com
Biological sex is a key modifier of #aging phenotypes, including #Brain 🧠 aging. See this piece out today in #Neuron, spearheaded by @denadubal.bsky.social, co-authored by #YousinSuh, @ctmurphy1.bsky.social and myself on the topic: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti... #GeroSky #SexDifferences
Male-Female comparisons are powerful in Biomedical Research. More on this and what is a "Pink Box Warning"?? From @ctmurphy1.bsky.social @bbparis1984.bsky.social Yousin Suh and me in the latest issue of Neuron www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Biological sex matters in brain aging
Every cell in the body has a biological sex. The expansion of aging research to investigate female- and male-specific biology heralds a major advance …
sciencedirect.com
Biological sex matters in brain aging- from my colleagues @denadubal.bsky.social , Yousin Suh, @bbparis1984.bsky.social and me: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
Biological sex matters in brain aging
Every cell in the body has a biological sex. The expansion of aging research to investigate female- and male-specific biology heralds a major advance …
sciencedirect.com
With gratitude for the lovely visit to @ucirvine.bsky.social hosted by the md/phd students. Enjoyed time with @elizabethhead.bsky.social, Kim Green, Frank LaFerla, Claudia Kawas, Matthew Blurton-Jones, and Michael Leon. Thanks @nelliekwang.bsky.social!
