Decrease of choline acetyltransferase activity of rat cortex capillaries with aging.
Choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity was estimated in brain cortex capillaries isolated from 3-, 12-, 18-, and 24-month-old rats. Maximum enzymatic activity was found at 12 months (55 +/- 0.3 pmol X mg-1 protein X min-1; mean +/- SEM) and then it decreased to reach a minimum at 24 months (34 +/- 3.1 pmol X mg-1 protein X min-1). A less marked decrease of enzymatic activity was also found in cortex homogenate and in a synaptosomal fraction obtained from the same groups of rats. Loss of ChAT of brain capillaries with aging could be related to a general phenomenon of cortical cholinergic deficit in that condition.
D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000201:enzymology; D002196:Capillaries / Q000201:enzymology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013574:Synaptosomes / Q000201:enzymology
D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase