scholarly journals Female mice are resilient to age-related decline of substantia nigra dopamine neuron firing parameters

2020 ◽  
Vol 95 ◽  
pp. 195-204
Author(s):  
Rebecca D. Howell ◽  
Sergio Dominguez-Lopez ◽  
Sarah R. Ocañas ◽  
Willard M. Freeman ◽  
Michael J. Beckstead
Keyword(s):  
Substantia Nigra ◽  
Dopamine Neuron ◽  
Neuron Firing ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
Age Related

scholarly journals Female mice are resilient to age-related decline of substantia nigra dopamine neuron firing parameters

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca D. Howell ◽  
Sergio Dominguez-Lopez ◽  
Sarah Ocañas ◽  
Willard M. Freeman ◽  
Michael J. Beckstead
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Substantia Nigra ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Brain Slices ◽  
Dopamine Neuron ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Central Feature ◽  
Neuron Firing

SUMMARYThe degeneration of substantia nigra (SN) dopamine neurons is a central feature in the pathology associated with Parkinson’s disease, which is characterized by progressive loss of motor and cognitive functions. The largest risk factors for Parkinson’s disease are age and sex; most cases occur after age 60 and males have nearly twice the incidence as females. While much research in Parkinson’s has focused on the mechanisms underlying dopamine neuron degeneration, very little work has considered the influence of these two risk factors to disease risk and presentation. In this work, we performed whole cell patch clamp recordings in brain slices to study the alterations in intrinsic firing properties of single dopamine neurons in C57BL/6 mice across ages and between sexes. We observed a progressive decline in dopamine neuron firing activity in males by 18 months of age, while dopamine neurons from females remained largely unaffected. A semiquantitative analysis of midbrain dopamine neuron populations revealed a slight decrease only in substantia nigra dopamine neurons in males, while females did not change. This was also accompanied by increases in the expression of genes that have been linked to Parkinson’s including PTEN-induced kinase 1 (PINK1) in both males and females, and the ubiquitin ligase parkin, primarily in the substantia nigra of males. These impairments in dopamine neuron function in males may represent a vulnerability to further insults that could predispose these cells to neurodegenerative diseases such as in Parkinson’s.

scholarly journals Preconceptional Resveratrol Supplementation Partially Counteracts Age-Related Reproductive Complications in C57BL/6J Female Mice

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1934
Author(s):  
Marta Ziętek ◽  
Katarzyna Barłowska ◽  
Barbara Wijas ◽  
Ewa Szablisty ◽  
Atanas G. Atanasov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Animal Models ◽  
Mating Success ◽  
Pregnancy Outcomes ◽  
Pregnancy Complications ◽  
Polyphenolic Compound ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Anti Oxidant

Aging is associated with a drastic decline in fertility/fecundity and with an increased risk of pregnancy complications. Resveratrol (RES), a natural polyphenolic compound, has shown anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activities in both human and animal models, thus representing a potential therapeutic and prophylactic anti-aging supplement. Here, we investigated whether preconceptional resveratrol supplementation improved reproductive outcomes in mid-aged (8-month-old) and old (12-month-old) C57BL/6J female mice. Female siblings were cohoused and assigned to either RES or vehicle supplementation to drinking water for 10 consecutive weeks. Subsequently, females were mated with non-supplemented males and their pregnancy outcomes were monitored. RES improved mating success in old, but not in mid-aged females, and prevented the occurrence of delivery complications in the latter. These results indicate that preconceptional RES supplementation could partially improve age-related reproductive complications, but it was not sufficient to restore fecundity in female mice at a very advanced age.

scholarly journals NPY Deficiency Prevents Postmenopausal Adiposity by Augmenting Estradiol-Mediated Browning

2018 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
pp. 1042-1049
Author(s):  
Seongjoon Park ◽  
Erkhembayar Nayantai ◽  
Toshimitsu Komatsu ◽  
Hiroko Hayashi ◽  
Ryoichi Mori ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Weight ◽  
Adipose Tissue ◽  
Fat Metabolism ◽  
Male Mice ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Promising Target ◽  
Intracellular Mechanism

Abstract The orexigenic hormone neuropeptide Y (NPY) plays a pivotal role in the peripheral regulation of fat metabolism. However, the mechanisms underlying the effects of sex on NPY function have not been extensively analyzed. In this study, we examined the effects of NPY deficiency on fat metabolism in male and female mice. Body weight was slightly decreased, whereas white adipose tissue (WAT) mass was significantly decreased as the thermogenic program was upregulated in NPY-/- female mice compared with that in wild-type mice; these factors were not altered in response to NPY deficiency in male mice. Moreover, lack of NPY resulted in an increase in luteinizing hormone (LH) expression in the pituitary gland, with concomitant activation of the estradiol-mediated thermogenic program in inguinal WAT, and alleviated age-related modification of adiposity in female mice. Taken together, these data revealed a novel intracellular mechanism of NPY in the regulation of fat metabolism and highlighted the sexual dimorphism of NPY as a promising target for drug development to reduce postmenopausal adiposity.

scholarly journals Changes in Retinal Structure and Ultrastructure in the Aged Mice Correlate With Differences in the Expression of Selected Retinal miRNAs

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anca Hermenean ◽  
Maria Consiglia Trotta ◽  
Sami Gharbia ◽  
Andrei Gelu Hermenean ◽  
Victor Eduard Peteu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Amorphous Materials ◽  
Retinal Pigment ◽  
Ultrastructural Changes ◽  
Male Mice ◽  
Bruch's Membrane ◽  
Bruch’S Membrane ◽  
Female Mice ◽  
Biological Sex ◽  
Age Related

Age and gender are two important factors that may influence the function and structure of the retina and its susceptibility to retinal diseases. The aim of this study was to delineate the influence that biological sex and age exert on the retinal structural and ultrastructural changes in mice and to identify the age-related miRNA dysregulation profiles in the retina by gender. Experiments were undertaken on male and female Balb/c aged 24 months (approximately 75–85 years in humans) compared to the control (3 months). The retinas were analyzed by histology, transmission electron microscopy, and age-related miRNA expression profile analysis. Retinas of both sexes showed a steady decline in retinal thickness as follows: photoreceptor (PS) and outer layers (p < 0.01 for the aged male vs. control; p < 0.05 for the aged female vs. control); the inner retinal layers were significantly affected by the aging process in the males (p < 0.01) but not in the aged females. Electron microscopy revealed more abnormalities which involve the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) and Bruch’s membrane, outer and inner layers, vascular changes, deposits of amorphous materials, and accumulation of lipids or lipofuscins. Age-related miRNAs, miR-27a-3p (p < 0.01), miR-27b-3p (p < 0.05), and miR-20a-5p (p < 0.05) were significantly up-regulated in aged male mice compared to the controls, whereas miR-20b-5p was significantly down-regulated in aged male (p < 0.05) and female mice (p < 0.05) compared to the respective controls. miR-27a-3p (5.00 fold; p < 0.01) and miR-27b (7.58 fold; p < 0.01) were significantly up-regulated in aged male mice vs. aged female mice, whereas miR-20b-5p (−2.10 fold; p < 0.05) was significantly down-regulated in aged male mice vs. aged female mice. Interestingly, miR-27a-3p, miR-27b-3p, miR-20a-5p, and miR-20b-5p expressions significantly correlated with the thickness of the retinal PS layer (p < 0.01), retinal outer layers (p < 0.01), and Bruch’s membrane (p < 0.01). Our results showed that biological sex can influence the structure and function of the retina upon aging, suggesting that this difference may be underlined by the dysregulation of age-related mi-RNAs.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document