Effects of forced running exercise on cognitive function and its relation to zinc homeostasis-related gene expression in rat hippocampus.
Voluntary exercise has been implicated to be beneficial for overall health and cognitive function in both clinical and experimental studies, but little is presently known about forced physical exercise on cognition and underlying molecular mechanism. We have used real-time RT-PCR to analyze gene expression in hippocampus, in the presence and absence of physical exercise, during spatial learning of rats in the Morris water maze. Our results show distinct zinc homeostasis-related gene expression profiles associated with learning and memory. Rats with physical exercise (EXP) showed a significant up-regulation of mRNA expression of zinc transporter-2 (ZnT-2), ZnT-4, ZnT-5, ZnT-6, and ZnT-7, metallothionein-1 (MT-1)-MT-3, divalent cation transporter-1, and Zrt-Irt-like proteins-7 in hippocampus when compared with control rats. In addition, spatial learning ability was improved in EXP rats compared with that in control group. This study provides the first comparative view of zinc homeostasis-related gene expression in hippocampus following forced physical exercise. These results suggested that forced physical exercise may provide a simple means to maintain brain function and promote learning capacity. Results of this study also suggest that exercise mobilizes zinc homeostasis-related gene expression profiles that would be predicted to benefit brain plasticity processes.
Ni
Hong
H
Neurology Laboratory, The Children's Hospital Affiliated to Soochow University, No.303, Jingde Road, 215003 Suzhou, People's Republic of China. nyr2000@yeah.net
Li
Chao
C
Feng
Xing
X
Cen
Jian-Nong
JN
D000818:Animals; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D027682:Cation Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D008668:Metallothionein / Q000235:genetics; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012420:Running / Q000502:physiology*; D015032:Zinc / Q000378:metabolism*; D000099236:Solute Carrier Family 11, Member 2
D002352:Carrier Proteins; D027682:Cation Transport Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D008668:Metallothionein; D015032:Zinc; D000099236:Solute Carrier Family 11, Member 2; C099189:Slc30a2 protein, rat; C491596:Slc30a4 protein, rat