Molecular neuroscienceAge-related changes in polyamines in memory-associated brain structures in rats
Section snippets
Subjects
In the present study, 24-month-old Sprague–Dawley (SD) rats were termed aged rats (Cha et al 1998, Cha et al 2000, La Porta and Comolli 1999, Liu et al 2003a, Liu et al 2003b, Liu et al 2003c, Liu et al 2004a, Liu et al 2004b, Liu et al 2005, Liu et al 2008a, Liu et al 2008b, Kollen et al 2008). Significant behavioral and electrophysiological impairments were observed in 24-month-old SD rats as compared with the young adults (4-month-old) (Liu et al 2004b, Liu et al 2005, Kollen et al 2008).
Putrescine
Putrescine levels in the sub-regions of the hippocampus and the PFC across three age groups are presented in Fig. 1A. A one-way ANOVA revealed significant differences between groups in CA1 (F(2,24)=5.43; P=0.01), CA2/3 (F(2,24)=5.50; P=0.01), DG (F(2,24)=5.23; P=0.01), and PFC (F(2,24)=4.18; P=0.028). Post hoc tests revealed significantly decreased putrescine levels in the aged, but not the middle-aged, CA1 (P<0.05), the aged and middle aged DG (all P<0.05), and the aged, but not the
Discussion
This study, for the first time, systematically investigated age-related changes in the polyamine levels in several memory-associated brain structures in rats using LC/MS/MS (for putrescine) and HPLC (for spermidine and spermine). The putrescine, spermidine and spermine levels were 0.5–1.4, 25–70, and 30–70 μg/g tissue, respectively, across the hippocampus and cortices, which appear to be consistent with some of the earlier reports in general (Jaenne et al 1964, Sohn et al 2002, Adachi et al 2003
Conclusion
In summary, the present study demonstrates age-related region-specific changes in polyamines in memory-associated structures. Polyamines putrescine, spermidine and spermine have been well documented to play important roles in maintaining normal cellular function (Wallace 2000, Oredsson 2003). Although the modulatory role of polyamines in the NMDA receptor function has been long known (Rock and Macdonald 1995, Williams 1997), the contributions of endogenous polyamines to learning and memory
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Renuka Devaraj, Sree Charry, Nicola Collie and the technical staff in the Department of Anatomy and Structural Biology and School of Pharmacy for their assistance. This work was supported by New Zealand Lottery Health Board.
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