Neuroinflammation not associated with cholinergic degeneration in aged-impaired brain.

ABSTRACT: Degeneration of the cholinergic neurons in the basal forebrain and elevation of inflammatory markers are well-established hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease; however, the interplay of these processes in normal aging is not extensively studied. Consequently, we conducted a neuroanatomical investigation to quantify cholinergic neurons and activated microglia in the medial septum/vertical diagonal band (MS/VDB) of young (6 months) and aged (28 months) Fisher 344 × Brown Norway F(1) rats. Aged rats in this study were impaired relative to the young animals in spatial learning ability as assessed in the Morris water maze. Stereological analysis revealed no difference between aged and young rats in the total numbers of cholinergic neurons, demonstrating that loss of cholinergic neurons is not a nec

SUBMITTER: McQuail JA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2944908 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature