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Bernaud VE, Hiroi R, Poisson ML, Castaneda AJ, Kirshner ZZ, Gibbs RB, Bimonte-Nelson HA. Age Impacts the Burden That Reference Memory Imparts on an Increasing Working Memory Load and Modifies Relationships With Cholinergic Activity. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:610078. [PMID: 33643006 PMCID: PMC7902531 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.610078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2020] [Accepted: 01/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Rodent aging research often utilizes spatial mazes, such as the water radial-arm-maze (WRAM), to evaluate cognition. The WRAM can simultaneously measure spatial working and reference memory, wherein these two memory types are often represented as orthogonal. There is evidence, however, that these two memory forms yield interference at a high working memory load. The current study systematically evaluated whether the presence of a reference memory component impacts handling of an increasing working memory load. Young and aged female rats were tested to assess whether aging impacts this relationship. Cholinergic projections from the basal forebrain to the hippocampus and cortex can affect cognitive outcomes, and are negatively impacted by aging. To evaluate whether age-related changes in working and reference memory profiles are associated with cholinergic functioning, we assessed choline acetyltransferase activity in these behaviorally-tested rats. Results showed that young rats outperformed aged rats on a task testing solely working memory. The addition of a reference memory component deteriorated the ability to handle an increasing working memory load, such that young rats performed similar to their aged counterparts. Aged rats also had challenges when reference memory was present, but in a different context. Specifically, aged rats had difficulty remembering which reference memory arms they had entered within a session, compared to young rats. Further, aged rats that excelled in reference memory also excelled in working memory when working memory demand was high, a relationship not seen in young rats. Relationships between cholinergic activity and maze performance differed by age in direction and brain region, reflecting the complex role that the cholinergic system plays in memory and attentional processes across the female lifespan. Overall, the addition of a reference memory requirement detrimentally impacted the ability to handle working memory information across young and aged timepoints, especially when the working memory challenge was high; these age-related deficits manifested differently with the addition of a reference memory component. This interplay between working and reference memory provides insight into the multiple domains necessary to solve complex cognitive tasks, potentially improving the understanding of complexities of age- and disease- related memory failures and optimizing their respective treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria E Bernaud
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States.,Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| | - Ryoko Hiroi
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States.,Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| | - Mallori L Poisson
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States.,Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| | - Arthur J Castaneda
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States.,Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, Phoenix, AZ, United States
| | - Ziv Z Kirshner
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Robert B Gibbs
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Heather A Bimonte-Nelson
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, United States.,Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, Phoenix, AZ, United States
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Stavroulaki V, Giakoumaki SG, Sidiropoulou K. Working memory training effects across the lifespan: Evidence from human and experimental animal studies. Mech Ageing Dev 2020; 194:111415. [PMID: 33338498 DOI: 10.1016/j.mad.2020.111415] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Revised: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Working memory refers to a cognitive function that provides temporary storage and manipulation of the information necessary for complex cognitive tasks. Due to its central role in general cognition, several studies have investigated the possibility that training on working memory tasks could improve not only working memory function but also increase other cognitive abilities or modulate other behaviors. This possibility is still highly controversial, with prior studies providing contradictory findings. The lack of systematic approaches and methodological shortcomings complicates this debate even more. This review highlights the impact of working memory training at different ages on humans. Finally, it demonstrates several findings about the neural substrate of training in both humans and experimental animals, including non-human primates and rodents.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Stella G Giakoumaki
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, Department of Psychology, Gallos University Campus, University of Crete, Rethymno, 74100, Crete, Greece; University of Crete Research Center for the Humanities, The Social and Educational Sciences, University of Crete, Rethymno, 74100, Crete, Greece
| | - Kyriaki Sidiropoulou
- Dept of Biology, University of Crete, Greece; Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology - Foundation for Research and Technology Hellas, Greece.
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Ondek K, Brevnova O, Jimenez-Ornelas C, Vergara A, Zwienenberg M, Gurkoff G. A new model of repeat mTBI in adolescent rats. Exp Neurol 2020; 331:113360. [PMID: 32442552 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2020.113360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2019] [Revised: 05/02/2020] [Accepted: 05/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Sports-related injury is frequently associated with repeated diffuse and mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). We combined two existing models for inducing TBI in rats, the Impact Acceleration and Controlled Cortical Impact models, to create a new method relevant to the study of cognitive sequelae of repeat mTBI in adolescent athletes. Repeated mTBI, such as those incurred in sports, can result in a wide range of outcomes, with many individuals experiencing no chronic sequela while others develop profound cognitive and behavioral impairments, typically in the absence of lasting motor symptoms or gross tissue loss appreciable antemortem. It is critical to develop models of mTBI and repeat mTBI that have the flexibility to assess multiple parameters related to injury (e.g. number and magnitude of impacts, inter-injury interval, etc) that are associated with brain vulnerability compared to normal recovery. We designed a 3D-printed plastic implant to permanently secure a metal disc to the skull of adolescent rats in order to induce multiple injuries without performing multiple survival surgeries and also to minimize pre-injury anesthesia time. Rats were randomly assigned to sham injury (n = 12), single injury (n = 12; injury on P41), or repeat injury (n = 14; injuries on P35, P38, and P41) groups. Compared to single injury and sham injury, repeat injuries caused increased toe pinch reflex latency (F(2,34) = 4.126, p < .05) and diminished weight gain (F(2, 34) = 4.767, p < .05). Spatial navigation was tested using Morris water maze, beginning one week after the final injury (P48). While there were no differences between groups during acquisition, both single and repeat injuries resulted in deficits on probe trial performance (p < .01 and p < .05 respectively). Single injury animals also exhibited a deficit in working memory deficit across three days of testing (p < .05). Neither injury group had neuronal loss in the hilus or CA3, according to stereological quantification of NeuN. Therefore, by implanting a helmet we have created a relevant model of sports-related injury and repeated mTBI that results in subtle but significant changes in cognitive outcome in the absence of significant hippocampal cell death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katelynn Ondek
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America; Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, 1544 Newton Ct, Davis, CA 95818, United States of America.
| | - Olga Brevnova
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America.
| | - Consuelo Jimenez-Ornelas
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America.
| | - Audrey Vergara
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America.
| | - Marike Zwienenberg
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America.
| | - Gene Gurkoff
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, Davis School of Medicine, 4800 Y St Suite 3740, Sacramento, CA 95817, United States of America; Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, 1544 Newton Ct, Davis, CA 95818, United States of America.
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Hauser J, Llano López LH, Feldon J, Gargiulo PA, Yee BK. Small lesions of the dorsal or ventral hippocampus subregions are associated with distinct impairments in working memory and reference memory retrieval, and combining them attenuates the acquisition rate of spatial reference memory. Hippocampus 2020; 30:938-957. [DOI: 10.1002/hipo.23207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Hauser
- Laboratory of Behavioural NeurobiologySwiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich Schwerzenbach Switzerland
| | - Luis H. Llano López
- Laboratorio de Neurociencias y Psicología ExperimentalInstituto de Medicina y Biología Experimental de Cuyo (IMBECU), Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de Cuyo Mendoza Argentina
- Servicio de Terapia Intensiva Infantil. Servicio de Recuperación Cardiovascular Pediátrica. Hospital Pediátrico Humberto Notti Mendoza Argentina
| | - Joram Feldon
- Laboratory of Behavioural NeurobiologySwiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich Schwerzenbach Switzerland
| | - Pascual A. Gargiulo
- Laboratorio de Neurociencias y Psicología ExperimentalInstituto de Medicina y Biología Experimental de Cuyo (IMBECU), Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de Cuyo Mendoza Argentina
| | - Benjamin K. Yee
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health & Social SciencesThe Hong Kong Polytechnic University Hung Hom Hong Kong
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Lu Z, Yang T, Wang L, Qiu Q, Zhao Y, Wu A, Li T, Cheng W, Wang B, Li Y, Yang J, Zhao M. Comparison of different protocols of Morris water maze in cognitive impairment with heart failure. Brain Behav 2020; 10:e01519. [PMID: 31944619 PMCID: PMC7010571 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.1519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 12/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
AIM This study aimed to find a more sensitive and systematic behavioral evaluation protocol to evaluate the cognitive impairment in rats with heart failure (HF). METHODS AND RESULTS An HF rat model was built by ligating the left anterior descending coronary artery. The cardiac function and structure were detected using echocardiography. Myocardial histopathological changes were observed by nitro blue tetrazolium and hematoxylin-eosin staining. The cognitive functions were evaluated using the acquisition task, probe trial, reversal test, and matching-to-sample test of the Morris water maze. In the probe trial, the number of times the rats in the model group crossed the platform site significantly decreased compared with that in the sham group. In the reversal test, the average latency was significantly longer in the sham group compared with the model group in the first trial but was shorter in the second and third trials. In the matching-to-sample test, the average latency of Trial1 increased significantly in the model group compared with the sham group, while no obvious difference was observed in Trial2. Therefore, the difference in the average latency between Trial1 and Trial2 of the model group was significantly larger. CONCLUSIONS The cognitive impairment in rats with HF mainly reflected in the long-term and working memory, spatial learning, and reversal learning ability. The probe trial and reversal test in the water maze may be more sensitive and preferred to evaluate cognitive function after HF. These findings would provide a brief evaluation protocol for further studies on the relationship between cognitive function and HF.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziwen Lu
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Tao Yang
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Wang
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Qi Qiu
- Department of Pharmacy, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Yizhou Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Aiming Wu
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Tong Li
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Wenkun Cheng
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Baofu Wang
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Yang Li
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Jingjing Yang
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Mingjing Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Chinese Internal Medicine of Ministry of Education and Dongzhimen Hospital, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
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