Adolescent Binge-Type Ethanol Exposure in Rats Mirrors Age-Related Cognitive Decline by Suppressing Cholinergic Tone and Hippocampal Neurogenesis.

ABSTRACT: Heavy alcohol consumption followed by periods of abstinence (i.e., binge drinking) during adolescence is a concern for both acute and chronic health issues. Persistent brain damage after adolescent intermittent ethanol exposure in rodents, a model of binge drinking, includes reduced hippocampal neurogenesis and a loss of neurons in the basal forebrain that express the cholinergic phenotype. The circuit formed between those regions, the septohippocampal pathway, is critical for learning and memory. Furthermore, this circuit is also altered during the aging process. Thus, we examined whether pathology in septohippocampal circuit and impairments in spatial behaviors are amplified during aging following adolescent intermittent ethanol exposure. Female and male rats were exposed to intermittent

SUBMITTER: Reitz NL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8569390 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature