title: Cholinergic deficits in aged rat spinal cord: restoration by GM1 ganglioside.
abstract: Cholinergic neurons of spinal cord are central for the processing of motor, autonomic, and sensory modalities. Aging is associated with a variety of motor and autonomic symptoms that might be attributed, in part, to impaired spinal cord function. We found that cholinergic neurochemistry is diminished in the spinal cord of 22-24-month-old rats compared with 3-month-old rats. Choline acetyltransferase, high-affinity choline transport and hemicholinium-3 binding to the choline carrier were reduced in the aged spinal cord. The activity of the choline transporter and the hemicholinium-3 binding were decreased in all spinal segments, cervical, thoracic, lumbar and sacral. Hemicholinium-3 binding was reduced in ventral and dorsal horns along all spinal segments. The activity of choline acetyltransferase was decreased only in cervical and lumbar cord. Treatment of aged animals with GM1 induced the recovery of the presynaptic cholinergic markers in the aged spinal cord.
authors.affiliation: Neuroscience Program, Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, USA.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vogelsberg
authors.forename: T G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Fong
authors.forename: N H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Neff
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hadjiconstantinou
mesh_terms: D000109:Acetylcholine / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000378:metabolism; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase / Q000494:pharmacology; D018678:Cholinergic Agents / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D002799:Cholinergic Fibers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006426:Hemicholinium 3 / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D009474:Neurons / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D013118:Spinal Cord Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D018678:Cholinergic Agents; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; C065637:choline transporter; D006426:Hemicholinium 3; D005677:G(M1) Ganglioside; D002795:Choline O-Acetyltransferase; D000109:Acetylcholine