Brain aging and neurotransplantation. II. Effects of septal cell suspension grafts to hippocampus of aged rodents on learning and memory impairments.
Aged, cognitively impaired rats were transplanted with septal fetal cells into hippocampus on both sides. Behavioral testing 12 weeks after grafting revealed a significant improvement of the transplanted animals in relation to the non-grafted, age-matched controls. Oxotremorine-induced theta activity was recorded in the transplanted animals, without any difference in regard to young, or age-matched controls, suggesting that the transplant had not affected the hippocampal structure. Acetylcholine esterase (AChE) histochemistry demonstrated the survival of cholinergic cells within the transplant. The grafted cells remained clustered near or in the hippocampal formation without disrupting its structure. The beneficial effects of the transplant are discussed in relation to its possible mechanisms, and applications to human therapy.
Fernández
C I
CI
Bergado
J
J
De La Cuétara
K
K
Nunez
N
N
Castellanos
O
O
González
O
O
Torres
A
A
Macías
R
R
Alvarez
L
L
Molina
H
H