scholarly journals Sevoflurane Anesthesia Does Not Impair Acquisition Learning or Memory in the Morris Water Maze in Young Adult and Aged Rats

2012 ◽  
Vol 117 (5) ◽  
pp. 1091-1101 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer K. Callaway ◽  
Nigel C. Jones ◽  
Alistair G. Royse ◽  
Colin F. Royse

Background Sevoflurane has been found to increase apoptosis and pathologic markers associated with Alzheimer disease, provoking concern over their potential contribution to postoperative cognitive dysfunction. Methods The effects of anesthesia with 1 minimum alveolar concentration of sevoflurane for 4 h or sham exposure on cognition were investigated in young adult and aged (20-24 months) rats at 1, 4, and 12 weeks postexposure. Spatial reference memory acquisition and retention were tested in the Morris water maze task. Latency to locate the hidden platform and swim speed were determined and compared between treatments. Results Sevoflurane anesthesia significantly reduced latency to find the hidden platform in both young adult (n = 10 per treatment, P < 0.0001) and aged rats (n = 7 per treatment, P < 0.0001) when tested 1 week after exposure. In young rats only, this improved acquisition learning was maintained at 4 (P = 0.003) but not at 12 weeks postexposure (P = 0.061). There were no differences in swim speed or in open field exploration between groups (no confounding effects of stress or locomotion). Retention memory measured using probe trials was not affected by exposure to sevoflurane in young adult or aged rats. Conclusion Sevoflurane anesthesia did not impair acquisition learning and retention memory in young adult or aged rats.

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaske Oberman ◽  
Iris Hovens ◽  
Jacco de Haan ◽  
Joana Falcao-Salles ◽  
Barbara van Leeuwen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Inflammation is considered a key factor in the development of postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD). Therefore, we hypothesized that pre-operative anti-inflammatory treatment with ibuprofen would inhibit POCD in our rat-model. Methods Male Wistar rats of 3 or 23 months old received a single injection of ibuprofen (15 mg/kg i.p.) or were control handled before abdominal surgery. Timed blood and fecal samples were collected for analyses of inflammation markers and gut microbiome changes. Behavioral testing was performed from 9 to 14 days after surgery, in the open field, novel object- and novel location-recognition tests and Morris water maze. Neuroinflammation and neurogenesis were assessed by immune histochemistry after sacrifice on postoperative day 14. Results Ibuprofen improved short-term spatial memory in the novel location recognition test, and increased hippocampal neurogenesis. However, these effects were associated with increased hippocampal microglia activity. Whereas plasma cytokine levels (IL1-β, IL6, IL10, and TNFα) were not significantly affected, VEGF levels increased and IFABP levels decreased after ibuprofen. Long-term memory in the Morris water maze was not significantly improved by ibuprofen. The gut microbiome was neither significantly affected by surgery nor by ibuprofen treatment. In general, effects in aged rats appeared similar to those in young rats, though less pronounced. Conclusion A single injection of ibuprofen before surgery improved hippocampus-associated short-term memory after surgery and increased neurogenesis. However, this favorable outcome seemed not attributable to inhibition of (neuro)inflammation. Potential contributions of intestinal and blood-brain barrier integrity need further investigation. Although less pronounced compared to young rats, effects in aged rats indicate that even elderly individuals could benefit from ibuprofen treatment.


2012 ◽  
Vol 116 (4) ◽  
pp. 779-787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hélène Le Freche ◽  
Jonathan Brouillette ◽  
Francisco-José Fernandez-Gomez ◽  
Pauline Patin ◽  
Raphaëlle Caillierez ◽  
...  

Background There is a growing interest in the involvement of anesthetic agents in the etiology of postoperative cognitive dysfunction. Recent animal studies suggest that acute anesthesia induces transient hyperphosphorylation of tau, an effect essentially ascribed to hypothermia. The main aim of the present study was to investigate effects, in normothermic conditions, of acute or repeated exposure to sevoflurane, a halogenated anesthetic agent, on hippocampal tau phosphorylation and spatial memory in adult mice. Methods 5 to 6-month-old C57Bl6/J mice were submitted to acute (1 h) or repeated (five exposures of 1h every month) anesthesia using 1.5 or 2.5% sevoflurane, in normothermic conditions. In the acute protocol, animals were sacrificed 1 and 24 h after exposure. In the chronic protocol, spatial memory was evaluated using the Morris water maze following the fourth exposure, and tau phosphorylation evaluated 1 month following the last exposure using bi- and mono-dimensional electrophoresis. Results Acute sevoflurane anesthesia in normothermic conditions led to a significant dose-dependent and reversible hippocampal tau phosphorylation, 1 h following the end of exposure (P < 0.001). Conversely, repeated anesthesia led to persistent tau hyperphosphorylation and significant memory impairments, as seen in the retention phase of the Morris water maze in sevoflurane-anesthesized animals. These pathologic features may be related to the activation of both Akt and Erk pathways. Conclusions The present study demonstrates, in mice, that sevoflurane exposure is associated with increased tau phosphorylation through specific kinases activation and spatial memory deficits. These data support a correlation between exposures to this anesthetic agent and cognitive decline.


Author(s):  
Mahmoud Hashemzaei ◽  
Najmeh Baratzadeh ◽  
Iraj Sharamian ◽  
Sahar Fanoudi ◽  
Mehdi Sanati ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives H-89 (a protein kinase AII [PKA II] inhibitor) impairs the spatial memory in the Morris water maze task in rats. In the present study, we aimed to study the protective effects of nicotine and O-acetyl-L-carnitine against H-89-induced spatial memory deficits. Methods Spatial memory impairment was induced by the bilateral intrahippocampal administration of 10 µM H-89 (dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide, DMSO) to rats. The rats then received bilateral administrations of either nicotine (1 μg/μL, dissolved in saline) or O-acetyl-L-carnitine (100 μM/side, dissolved in deionized water) alone and in combination. Control groups received either saline, deionized water, or DMSO. Results The H-89-treated animals showed significant increases in the time and distance travelled to find hidden platforms, and there was also a significant decrease in the time spent in the target quadrant compared to DMSO-treated animals. Nicotine and O-acetyl-L-carnitine had no significant effects on H-89-induced spatial learning impairments alone, but the bilateral intrahippocampal co-administration of nicotine and O-acetyl-L-carnitine prevented H-89-induced spatial learning deficits and increased the time spent in the target quadrant in comparison with H-89-treated animals. Conclusions Our results indicated the potential synergistic effects of nicotine and O-acetyl-L-carnitine in preventing protein kinase AII inhibitor (H-89)-induced spatial learning impairments.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Stening ◽  
Jonas Persson ◽  
Elias Eriksson ◽  
Lars-Olof Wahlund ◽  
Henrik Zetterberg ◽  
...  

1996 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 205-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark D. Lindner ◽  
Cristin E. Kearns ◽  
Shelley R. Winn ◽  
Beata Frydel ◽  
Dwaine F. Emerich

Exogenous NGF administered into the central nervous system (CNS) has been reported to improve cognitive function in aged rats. However, concerns have been expressed about the risks involved with supplying NGF to the CNS. In this study, baby hamster kidney cells (BHK) genetically modified to secrete human NGF (hNGF) were encapsulated in semipermeable membranes and implanted intraventricularly. ChAT/LNGFR-positive basal forebrain neurons were shown to atrophy and degenerate with age, especially in cognitively impaired rats. The encapsulated BHK-NGF cells produced less than 10% of doses previously reported to be effective, but this was sufficient to increase the size of ChAT/LNGFR-positive basal forebrain neurons in the aged and learning-impaired rats to the size of the neurons in young healthy rats. The hNGF from these encapsulated cells also improved performance in a repeated-acquisition version of the Morris water maze spatial learning task in learning-impaired 20.6- and 26.7- mo-old rats. Furthermore, there was no evidence that these doses of hNGF impaired Morris water maze performance in the youngest 3.3-5.4 mo rats, and analyses of mortality rates, body weights, somatosensory thresholds, potential hyperalgesia, and activity levels, suggested that these levels of exogenous hNGF are not toxic or harmful to aged rats. These results suggest that CNS-implanted semipermeable membranes, containing genetically modified xenogeneic cells continuously producing these levels of hNGF, attenuate age-related cognitive deficits in nonimmunosuppressed aged rats, and that both the surgical implantation procedure and long-term exposure to low doses of hNGF appear safe in aged rats.


2019 ◽  
Vol 184 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 291-300
Author(s):  
Sarah S Sanjakdar ◽  
William J Flerlage ◽  
Hyun S Kang ◽  
Douglas A Napier ◽  
Jaqueline R Dougherty ◽  
...  

Abstract This study assessed the effect of caffeine on neurobehavioral recovery in the WRAIR penetrating ballistic-like brain injury (PBBI) model. Unilateral frontal PBBI was produced in the right hemisphere of anesthetized rats at moderate (7%-PBBI) or severe (10%-PBBI) injury levels. Animals were randomly assigned to pretreatment groups: acute caffeine (25 mg/kg CAF gavage, 1 h prior to PBBI), or chronic caffeine (0.25 g/L CAF drinking water, 30 days prior to PBBI). Motor function was evaluated on the rotarod at fixed-speed increments of 10, 15, and 20 RPM. Cognitive performance was evaluated on the Morris water maze. Acute caffeine showed no significant treatment effect on motor or cognitive outcome. Acute caffeine exposure prior to 10%-PBBI resulted in a significantly higher thigmotaxic response compared to vehicle-PBBI groups, which may indicate caffeine exacerbates post-injury anxiety/attention decrements. Results of the chronic caffeine study revealed a significant improvement in motor outcome at 7 and 10 days post-injury in the 7%-PBBI group. However, chronic caffeine exposure significantly increased the latency to locate the platform in the Morris water maze task at all injury levels. Results indicate that chronic caffeine consumption prior to a penetrating TBI may provide moderate beneficial effects to motor recovery, but may worsen the neurocognitive outcome.


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