Short-term environmental enrichment rescues adult neurogenesis and memory deficits in APP(Sw,Ind) transgenic mice.

ABSTRACT: Epidemiological studies indicate that intellectual activity prevents or delays the onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Similarly, cognitive stimulation using environmental enrichment (EE), which increases adult neurogenesis and functional integration of newborn neurons into neural circuits of the hippocampus, protects against memory decline in transgenic mouse models of AD, but the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. To study the therapeutic benefits of cognitive stimulation in AD we examined the effects of EE in hippocampal neurogenesis and memory in a transgenic mouse model of AD expressing the human mutant β-amyloid (Aβ) precursor protein (APP(Sw,Ind)). By using molecular markers of new generated neurons (bromodeoxiuridine, NeuN and doublecortin), we found reduced neurogenesis and

SUBMITTER: Valero J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3036721 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature