title: Somatostatin receptors in the senescent rat brain: a quantitative autoradiographic study.
abstract: To examine the effects of aging on the density and distribution of somatostatin receptors (SS-R) in the rat brain, receptor autoradiography for SS-R was carried out in rats aged 3 and 24 months using 125I-labeled Tyr11-SS-14. Autoradiograms were quantitatively assessed by an image analyzer to evaluate changes in the expression of SS-R due to senescence. Statistically significant decreases in SS-R binding were found in specific regions of the brains of senescent rats as compared to young adult rats. The regions affected included the periaqueductal gray matter (73% loss versus young adult rats), the interpeduncular nucleus (73% loss), the pontine nucleus (63% loss), the superior colliculus (46% loss), the ventral tegmental area (46% loss), the temporal cortex (39% loss), the frontal cortex (34% loss), the hippocampus (33% loss), the amygdala (27% loss) and the claustrum (26% loss). There was no significant change in SS-R expression in the spinal cord with aging. Significant reductions in SS-R binding in these brain regions may be involved in the impairment of sensory and cognitive function that can occur with aging.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Internal Medicine, Okayama University Medical School, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ota
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ogawa
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001345:Autoradiography; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D011916:Rats, Inbred F344; D017981:Receptors, Neurotransmitter / Q000378:metabolism*; D017481:Receptors, Somatostatin
chemical_list: D017981:Receptors, Neurotransmitter; D017481:Receptors, Somatostatin