Astrocyte Function Is Affected by Aging and Not Alzheimer's Disease: A Preliminary Investigation in Hippocampi of 3xTg-AD Mice.

ABSTRACT: Old age is a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), which is characterized by hippocampal impairment together with substantial changes in glial cell functions. Are these alterations due to the disease progression or are they a consequence of aging? To start addressing this issue, we studied the expression of specific astrocytic and microglial structural and functional proteins in a validated transgenic model of AD (3×Tg-AD). These mice develop both amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, and initial signs of the AD-like pathology have been documented as early as three months of age. We compared male 3×Tg-AD mice at 6 and 12 months of age with their wild-type age-matched counterparts. We also investigated neurons by examining the expression of both the microtubule-associated protein

SUBMITTER: Bronzuoli MR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6562169 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature