TL;DR
A study published in 2023 found that lowering Menin in parts of the mouse hypothalamus was associated with inflammation and several age-related changes. Restoring Menin improved selected measures in older mice, while D-serine supplementation improved learning and memory tests; neither result establishes an anti-aging treatment for people.
Researchers led by Lige Leng at Xiamen University reported that restoring Menin, a protein in a specific brain region, improved several measures of aging in older mice, while the amino acid D-serine improved learning and memory test performance. The findings, published in PLOS Biology in March 2023, suggest a possible link between brain inflammation and changes elsewhere in the body, but they do not show that either intervention slows aging or prevents memory loss in people.
The team examined Menin in the hypothalamus, a brain region involved in functions including metabolism, sleep, temperature regulation and hormone production. In certain hypothalamic neurons, Menin levels fell as mice aged. The researchers also found that Menin helps restrain inflammation and regulates activity in a biochemical pathway associated with D-serine production.
To test whether Menin loss could contribute to age-related changes, the scientists used genetically modified mice with reduced Menin activity. Those animals developed more hypothalamic inflammation, thinner skin, lower bone mass and poorer performance on cognitive tests. Their lifespan was modestly shorter than that of comparison animals. These experiments indicate that reducing Menin can affect several measures in mice; they do not by themselves establish that Menin loss is a primary cause of aging.
In another experiment, researchers used gene delivery to increase Menin in the ventromedial hypothalamus of 20-month-old mice. After 30 days, the treated animals showed improvements in skin thickness, bone mass, balance and tests of learning and memory, alongside reduced inflammation and changes in some metabolic measures. A separate survival analysis found that treated mice lived longer than untreated controls, though the supplied report does not give the size of that difference.
The researchers also tested D-serine, which helps regulate NMDA receptors involved in communication between nerve cells. Older mice given D-serine in drinking water for three weeks performed better on learning and memory tests. This was a distinct intervention from restoring Menin: the reported improvement in cognitive tests does not show that D-serine reversed other age-related changes or extended lifespan.
Brain Signaling and Whole-Body Aging
The study adds to evidence that processes in the brain may influence age-related changes beyond cognition. The hypothalamus helps coordinate systems across the body, so changes in its signaling could plausibly affect measures such as metabolism, bone and skin. In this mouse research, Menin connected inflammation with a pathway affecting D-serine, offering researchers a mechanism to investigate rather than proof of a treatment.
The amino-acid result may attract attention because memory performance improved after a relatively short intervention. But the experiment involved mice and controlled laboratory conditions. It cannot establish whether D-serine supplements improve memory in people, what dose might be safe or effective, or whether any benefit would last. Animal test results are not clinical evidence, and the findings are not a basis for self-treatment.
The work also raises questions about how separate effects fit together. Menin restoration affected multiple measured traits, while D-serine supplementation was reported to improve learning and memory. That difference matters: a result on memory tests should not be generalized into a claim that a supplement combats aging overall.
How Menin Connects to D-Serine
Menin is a protein that helps regulate gene activity. Earlier work by Leng and colleagues had identified a role for Menin in restraining inflammation in the hypothalamus. The 2023 study examined what happens when its activity declines with age and whether increasing it could alter selected outcomes in mice.
The researchers traced part of the relationship through PHGDH, an enzyme involved in the pathway that generates serine. Their findings linked Menin activity to D-serine levels in the hippocampus, a brain area important for learning and memory. D-serine helps regulate NMDA receptors, which support signaling between neurons. The study therefore connects a hypothalamic protein to a chemical signal relevant to memory, while leaving open how the pathway operates over time and across different species.
D-serine and L-serine are different forms of the amino acid. Foods containing L-serine, such as soybeans, eggs, fish and nuts, should not be treated as equivalent to the D-serine given in the experiments. The reported mouse study used D-serine supplementation in drinking water; the provided material does not specify a human dose or establish a dietary recommendation.
The ScienceDaily article revisiting the results in October 2026 notes that research published since the original study has added evidence for the brain’s role in regulating aging. The details supplied here do not identify those later studies, so they cannot be used to make specific claims about how much the evidence has advanced.
“The study identified a connection between inflammation, brain chemistry and aging throughout the body.”
— Researchers led by Lige Leng of Xiamen University
Human Benefits Remain Unproven
The findings described here come from mice. It is not known whether restoring Menin or taking D-serine would produce similar effects in people, or whether either approach would be safe. The experiments do not establish a useful human dose, possible side effects, or the duration of any benefit.
The supplied account also does not provide the number of animals in each experiment, the precise effect sizes for the reported improvements, or the size of the lifespan difference. Those details are needed to judge the strength and scale of the results. The D-serine experiment reported better performance on learning and memory tests, but does not establish broader effects on aging, everyday memory or dementia risk.
It is also unclear from the information provided whether the Menin-related changes seen in mice occur in the same way in humans. The study does not show that ordinary foods rich in L-serine can reproduce the effects of experimental D-serine supplementation. Further animal work and carefully designed human research would be needed before drawing clinical conclusions.
Evidence Needed Before Human Use
The immediate next step is further research to test how Menin and D-serine affect aging-related processes, including whether the mouse results can be replicated and which biological changes account for the measured improvements. Studies would also need to clarify the duration and size of any effects and assess risks before an intervention could be considered for people.
Any human investigation would need to establish whether D-serine affects memory or other outcomes in people, and to determine safe dosing under medical oversight. For Menin, researchers would first need to assess whether gene-delivery approaches can be developed and evaluated safely. Until such evidence is available, the findings remain preclinical; the study offers a research lead, not a proven supplement or anti-aging therapy.
Key Questions
What did the study find?
In mice, reducing Menin activity was associated with inflammation and several age-related changes. Restoring Menin improved selected measures, and D-serine supplementation improved performance on learning and memory tests.
Does D-serine prevent memory loss in people?
The findings described are from mice, not people. They do not show that D-serine prevents human memory loss or treats dementia.
Is D-serine the same as L-serine in food?
No. D-serine and L-serine are different forms. The researchers gave mice D-serine; the account does not show that eating foods containing L-serine has the same effect.
Did restoring Menin reverse aging?
The older mice showed improvements in several measured traits after 30 days, but the experiments do not establish that aging was reversed. The results were limited to mice and selected outcomes.
When was the research published?
The study was published in PLOS Biology in March 2023. ScienceDaily revisited the findings in an October 2026 report.
Source: rss
