Age-related changes in the diurnal rhythm of CRH gene expression in the paraventricular nuclei

1996 ◽  
Vol 270 (2) ◽  
pp. E238-E243 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Cai ◽  
P. M. Wise

A circadian rhythm secretion of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) is thought to regulate the circadian pattern of secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone and corticosterone. We have previously reported that the amplitude of the diurnal rhythm of serum corticosterone concentrations decreases in 17- to 20-mo-old rats. In the present experiment, we tested whether an age-related alteration in the daily rhythm and/or level of CRH mRNA in the paraventricular nuclei (PVN) occurs during middle age. Groups of young and middle-aged animals were killed at several times of day. We assessed the level of CRH mRNA in the PVN and dorsal medial subdivision of the PVN using in situ hybridization. In young rats, CRH mRNA expression exhibited a diurnal rhythm in the dorsal medial PVN. The same trend was observed in the entire medial PVN. In middle-aged rats, no rhythm was detected in either region. The overall average level of CRH mRNA was not different between these two age groups. These findings suggest that changes in the suprachiasmatic nucleus or in its ability to entrain neuroendocrine outputs occur relatively early during the aging process.

2011 ◽  
Vol 300 (4) ◽  
pp. R1001-R1008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Thunhorst ◽  
Connie L. Grobe ◽  
Terry G. Beltz ◽  
Alan Kim Johnson

These experiments examined water-drinking and arterial blood pressure responses to β-adrenergic receptor activation in young (4 mo), “middle-aged” adult (12 mo), and old (29 mo) male rats of the Brown-Norway strain. We used isoproterenol to simultaneously activate β1- and β2-adrenergic receptors, salbutamol to selectively activate β2-adrenergic receptors, and the combination of isoproterenol and the β2-adrenergic receptor antagonist ICI 118,551 to stimulate only β1-adrenergic receptors. Animals received one of the drug treatments, and water drinking was measured for 90 min. About 1 wk later, animals received the same drug treatment for measurement of arterial blood pressure responses for 90 min. In some rats, levels of renin and aldosterone secretion in response to isoproterenol or salbutamol were measured in additional tests. Old and middle-aged rats drank significantly less after isoproterenol than did young rats and also had greater reductions in arterial blood pressure. Old and middle-aged rats drank significantly less after salbutamol than did young rats, although reductions in arterial blood pressure were equivalent across the ages. The β2-adrenergic antagonist ICI 118,551 abolished drinking after isoproterenol and prevented most of the observed hypotension. Renin secretion after isoproterenol and salbutamol was greater in young rats than in middle-aged rats, and wholly absent in old rats. Aldosterone secretion was reduced in old rats compared with young and middle-aged rats after treatment with isoproterenol, but not after treatment with salbutamol. In conclusion, there are age-related differences in β-adrenergic receptor-mediated drinking that can be explained only in part by age-related differences in renin secretion after β-adrenergic receptor stimulation.


2009 ◽  
Vol 297 (1) ◽  
pp. R149-R157 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Thunhorst ◽  
Terry G. Beltz ◽  
Alan Kim Johnson

Compared to young cohorts, old rats drink less water in response to several thirst-inducing stimuli. In these experiments, we characterized water drinking in response to hypotension and cellular dehydration in young (4 mo), middle-aged adult (12 mo) and old (29–30 mo) male Brown Norway rats. We injected the vasodilator, minoxidil as an intravenous bolus in a range of doses (0–20 mg/kg), so that drinking responses could be compared at equivalent reductions of arterial pressure. Old rats had greatly diminished reflex tachycardia and became significantly more hypotensive after minoxidil compared with young and middle-aged rats. When compared at equivalent reductions of arterial pressure, old rats drank one-third as much as middle-aged rats, and one-fifth as much as young rats. In addition, there were age-related deficits in drinking in response to a range of administered loads of sodium (0.15–2 M NaCl, 2 ml/100 g body wt). Urinary excretion of water and sodium in response to the loads was equivalent across ages. Both middle-aged and old rats were less able than young rats to repair their water deficits after sodium loading, attributable almost entirely to their reduced drinking responses compared with young rats. Lastly, age-related declines in drinking appeared to be more severe in response to hypotension than in response to cellular dehydration.


1983 ◽  
Vol 55 (5) ◽  
pp. 1408-1412 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. A. Rattner ◽  
S. D. Michael ◽  
P. D. Altland

Immature, postpubertal, young adult, and middle-aged rats were lightly restrained for 4 h. Relative to untreated controls, restraint uniformly reduced body weight and plasma luteinizing hormone concentration and elevated plasma corticosterone concentration in all age groups. However, restraint increased activities of plasma alanine and aspartate aminotransferase, creatine phosphokinase, and fructose-diphosphate aldolase in only immature and middle-aged animals. This age-related release of tissue enzymes is hypothesized to reflect enhanced responsiveness to catecholamines in immature rats, and possible ischemia related to diminished vasodilatory activity in middle-aged rats. On the basis of these changes, tolerance to restraint in postpubertal and young adults appears to be slightly greater than that of immature and middle-aged rats.


1976 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. J. DONALDSON ◽  
G. H. THOMAS

SUMMARY DNA synthetic activity was monitored in rat and human prostate using [125I]iododeoxyuridine ([125I]UdR). Fresh prostate tissue from 6-week-old rats showed higher incorporation of [125I]UdR than that from 12- or 26-week-old rats. During culture for up to 6 days in the absence of hormones, the incorporation of [125I]UdR fell to a low level for all three age groups. Stimulatory effects were seen when rat prostates were cultured in the presence of insulin (3 μg/ml) and testosterone (10−7 mol/l), the incorporation on day 4 of culture being commensurate with that of fresh prostate of the corresponding age. Thus the magnitude of the response was higher for the 6-week-old prostate than that for the other two age groups. A similar age-related pattern of androgen stimulation was observed in experiments in which immature and adult castrated rats were injected daily with testosterone and the freshly removed prostates were incubated with [125I]UdR. Although insulin, by itself, had a stimulatory effect on [125I]UdR incorporation in cultured prostate, the magnitude of the response did not differ in the 6- and 26-week-old prostate tissue. Maximal stimulation was obtained using 25 μg insulin/ml. Tissue from a benign prostatic hyperplasia was also responsive to insulin in culture but it differed from rat prostate in that increased proliferative activity occurred even in the absence of hormone stimulation. This spontaneous surge in activity during culture tended to mask the stimulatory effects of insulin and testosterone at concentrations of 3 μg/ml and 10−7 mol/l respectively.


2015 ◽  
Vol 308 (11) ◽  
pp. E942-E949 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiao-nan (Joyce) Chen ◽  
Shang-Ying Lin ◽  
Yi-Hung Liao ◽  
Zhen-jie Li ◽  
Alice May-Kuen Wong

Caloric restriction (CR) attenuates age-related muscle loss. However, the underlying mechanism responsible for this attenuation is not fully understood. This study evaluated the role of energy metabolism in the CR-induced attenuation of muscle loss. The aims of this study were twofold: 1) to evaluate the effect of CR on energy metabolism and determine its relationship with muscle mass, and 2) to determine whether the effects of CR are age dependent. Young and middle-aged rats were randomized into either 40% CR or ad libitum (AL) diet groups for 14 wk. Major energy-producing pathways in muscles, i.e., glycolysis and mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), were examined. We found that the effects of CR were age dependent. CR improved muscle metabolism and normalized muscle mass in middle-aged animals but not young animals. CR decreased glycolysis and increased the cellular dependency for OXPHOS vs. glycolysis in muscles of middle-aged rats, which was associated with the improvement of normalized muscle mass. The metabolic reprogramming induced by CR was related to modulation of pyruvate metabolism and increased mitochondrial biogenesis. Compared with animals fed AL, middle-aged animals with CR had lower lactate dehydrogenase A content and greater mitochondrial pyruvate carrier content. Markers of mitochondrial biogenesis, including AMPK activation levels and SIRT1 and COX-IV content, also showed increased levels. In conclusion, 14 wk of CR improved muscle metabolism and preserved muscle mass in middle-aged animals but not in young developing animals. CR-attenuated age-related muscle loss is associated with reprogramming of the metabolic pathway from glycolysis to OXPHOS.


1977 ◽  
Vol 232 (6) ◽  
pp. E580
Author(s):  
M P Zabinski ◽  
P Biancani

Longitudinal force-length relationship of the rat esophagus was studied in vitro in three age groups: 1 mo, 3 mo, and 12 mo. The length of maximum force development (MFD) occurs at 1.4-1.5 times the in vivo length for all age groups. The active force developed at MFD increases markedly with age. The difference in the active forces in the 3-mo and 12-mo age groups is due to differences in cross section because the active stress of the esophagus in the longitudinal direction is approximately equal for the two age groups. The active stress in the 1-mo-old rats is lower than in the 3-mo-old rats, suggesting an increased contractility of the esophagus with age in this period of development.


2013 ◽  
Vol 305 (12) ◽  
pp. R1498-R1505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Thunhorst ◽  
Terry G. Beltz ◽  
Alan Kim Johnson

This work examined the effects of age on salt appetite measured in the form of daily saline (i.e., 0.3 M NaCl) drinking in response to administration of deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA; 5 mg/kg body wt) using young (4 mo), “middle-aged” adult (12 mo), and old (30 mo) male Brown Norway rats. Water and sodium intakes, excretions, and balances were determined daily. The salt appetite response was age dependent with “middle-aged” rats ingesting the most saline solution followed in order by young and then old rats. While old rats drank the least saline solution, the amounts of saline ingested still were copious and comprise an unambiguous demonstration of salt appetite in old rats. Middle-aged rats had the highest saline preference ratios of the groups under baseline conditions and throughout testing consistent with an increased avidity for sodium taste. There were age differences in renal handling of water and sodium that were consistent with a renal contribution to the greater saline intakes by middle-aged rats. There was evidence of impaired renal function in old rats, but this did not account for the reduced saline intakes of the oldest rats.


1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 58-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Stio ◽  
T. Iantomasi ◽  
F. Favilli ◽  
P. Marraccini ◽  
B. Lunghi ◽  
...  

A comprehensive study on glutathione metabolism in rat heart and liver as a function of age was performed. In the heart, reduced glutathione, total glutathione, and the glutathione redox index showed a decrease during aging, while oxidized glutathione levels increased in 5-month-old rats with respect to the young animals and remained quite constant in 14- and 27-month-old rats. In the liver, the highest levels of reduced glutathione were found in the 2-month-old rats, while oxidized glutathione reached a peak at 5 months. Glutathione-associated enzymes showed age-related changes. Glutathione peroxidase, unaffected by aging in the heart, decreased in the liver of the 27-month-old rats. In the heart and the liver, the highest values of glutathione S-transferase were found at 5 months and 27 months, respectively. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase followed a similar trend in both heart and liver. Glutathione reductase also showed the same behaviour in heart and in liver, increasing in old rats with respect to the other age groups. A decrease in γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase was found in the heart and liver of 27-month-old rats in comparison with the 2-month-old ones. In conclusion, a decreased antioxidant capability has been demonstrated in both heart and liver of old rats.Key words: glutathione metabolism, age, rat heart, rat liver.


1992 ◽  
Vol 73 (5) ◽  
pp. 1932-1938 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Nasrullah ◽  
R. S. Mazzeo

The present investigation examined the extent to which 15 wk of endurance training could influence immune function in young, middle-aged, and older animals. Forty-eight male Fischer 344 rats were divided into trained and untrained groups. Training consisted of treadmill running at 75% maximal running capacity for 1 h/day, 5 days/wk, for 15 wk. Animals were killed at 8, 17, and 27 mo, at which time splenocytes were isolated. The capacity for lymphocyte proliferation in response to mitogen (concanavalin A, ConA), interleukin-2 (IL-2) production, and cytolytic activity against YAC-1 target cells was determined. ConA-induced proliferation declined significantly with age. Training suppressed the proliferative response in the young (-41%) and middle-aged animals (-27%) compared with the age-matched controls; however, training improved this response (+58%) in the older group. IL-2 production followed a pattern similar to that for mitogen-induced proliferation, such that production declined with age and was reduced with training in young and middle-aged animals but was significantly more improved in the older animals than in age-matched controls. The ability to lyse target cells, measured as percent cytotoxicity, declined steadily with advancing age at all effector-to-target cell ratios tested: 52, 14, and -16% for 8-, 17-, and 27-mo-old rats, respectively. It was concluded that the capacity for ConA-induced splenocyte proliferation, IL-2 production, and cytolytic activity declines significantly with advancing age. Furthermore, 15 wk of endurance training suppressed proliferation and IL-2 production in young animals but improved these responses in older animals. Training had no effect on cytolytic activity.


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