Nicotinic and muscarinic subtypes in the human brain: changes with aging and dementia.
Different effects of normal aging on muscarinic and nicotinic receptor subtypes were observed in postmortem brain tissue from different regions of the human brain. A significant decrease in M1 and M2 receptors was found in cerebral cortex, while the M1 and especially the M2 receptors increased with age in the thalamus. A similar pattern of changes was also observed when using (-)3H-nicotine as ligand for nicotinic receptors in the cortex and thalamus. No significant changes in nicotinic receptor binding were observed with age in the cortex or thalamus when using 3H-acetylcholine as ligand. Nicotinic and muscarinic receptors in the brain are not equally affected in dementia disorders. A marked loss of high affinity nicotinic receptors was observed in cortical tissue from patients with Alzheimer's disease and with multi-infarct dementia (MID). The muscarinic receptors were (both M1 and M2) increased in Alzheimer cortical tissue while they were decreased in MID.
Nordberg
A
A
Department of Pharmacology, Uppsala University, Sweden.
Alafuzoff
I
I
Winblad
B
B
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D001923:Brain Chemistry; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase / Q000032:analysis; D003704:Dementia / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D015161:Dementia, Multi-Infarct / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000032:analysis* / Q000145:classification; D011976:Receptors, Muscarinic / Q000032:analysis* / Q000145:classification; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic / Q000032:analysis* / Q000145:classification; D013788:Thalamus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology
D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D011976:Receptors, Muscarinic; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase