The aging hippocampus: Cognitive, biochemical and structural findings

被引:344
作者
Driscoll, I
Hamilton, DA
Petropoulos, H
Yeo, RA
Brooks, WM
Baumgartner, RN
Sutherland, RJ
机构
[1] Univ Lethbridge, Canadian Ctr Behav Neurosci, Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4, Canada
[2] Univ New Mexico, Dept Psychol, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA
[3] Univ New Mexico, Hlth Sci Ctr, Clin & Magnet Resonance Res Ctr, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA
[4] Univ New Mexico, Hlth Sci Ctr, Dept Neurosci, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA
[5] Univ New Mexico, Hlth Sci Ctr, Aging & Genet Epidemiol Program, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA
关键词
D O I
10.1093/cercor/bhg081
中图分类号
Q189 [神经科学];
学科分类号
071006 ;
摘要
Aging is often accompanied by learning and memory problems, many of which resemble deficits associated with hippocampal damage. Studies of aging in nonhuman animals have demonstrated hippocampus-related memory decline, and point to a possible locus for impairments associated with normal and pathological aging in humans. Two well-characterized hippocampus-dependent tasks in nonhuman animal literature are the Morris water task (MWT) and the transverse patterning discrimination task (TPDT). We employed the virtual MWT and the TPDT to assess hippocampus-dependent cognition in humans. Magnetic resonance imaging and proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy were employed to measure hippocampal volume and neurochemistry respectively. Age-related deficits were observed in performance on both hippocampus-dependent tasks. This pattern of impairment was accompanied by decreased hippocampal NAA/Cre ratios and volume, both of which imply neuronal loss and/or decrease in neuronal density. Collectively, our results suggest that hippocampus undergoes structural and biochemical changes with normal aging and that these changes may represent an important component of age-related deterioration in hippocampus-dependent cognition.
引用
收藏
页码:1344 / 1351
页数:8
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