Transcranial Red LED Therapy: A Promising Non-Invasive Treatment to Prevent Age-Related Hippocampal Memory Impairment

Abstract

The hippocampus is an integral portion of the limbic system and executes a critical role in spatial and recognition learning, memory encoding, and memory consolidation. Hippocampal aging showed neurobiological alterations, including increased oxidative stress, altered intracellular signaling pathways, synaptic impairment, and organelle deterioration such as mitochondrial dysfunction. These alterations lead to hippocampal cognitive decline during aging. Therefore, the search for new non-invasive therapies focused on preserving or attenuating age-related hippocampal memory impairment could have of great impact on aging, considering the increasing life expectancy in the world. Red light Transcranial LED therapy (RL-TCLT) is a promising but little explored strategy, which involves red light LED irradiation without surgical procedures, safe and at a low cost. Nevertheless, the precise mechanism involved and its real impact on age-related cognitive impairment is unclear, due to differences in protocol, wavelength applied, and time. Therefore, in this chapter, we will discuss the evidence about RL-TCLT and its effects on the hippocampal structure and function, and how this therapy could be used as a promising treatment for memory loss during aging and in age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Finally, we will mention our advances in Red 630-light-Transcranial LED therapy on the hippocampus in aging and AD.