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Isolation of Intermediate Filament Proteins from Multiple Mouse Tissues to Study Aging-associated Post-translational Modifications
Published on: May 18, 2017
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Aging-dependent changes in the cellular composition of the mouse brain and spinal cord
1Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW 2031, Australia; The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
Neuroscience
|February 3, 2015
Summary
Aging alters the cellular makeup of the mouse central nervous system, with region-specific changes in neuronal and non-neuronal cell numbers and proliferation. These findings highlight diverse aging effects across brain and spinal cord structures.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Aging Research
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Aging impacts central nervous system (CNS) function, but cellular composition changes are less understood.
- Limited data exists on age-related shifts in brain and spinal cord cell numbers and types.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate aging-associated changes in neuronal and non-neuronal cell populations within distinct CNS regions.
- To assess the proliferative capacity across different brain areas and the spinal cord during aging.
Main Methods:
- Used the isotropic fractionator method to quantify cell numbers in female mice at multiple ages (15 weeks to 25 months).
- Analyzed specific brain regions (isocortex, hippocampus, cerebellum, olfactory bulb, 'rest of brain') and the spinal cord.
- Determined proliferative capacity by counting Ki-67-positive cells.
Main Results:
- Isocortex showed no age-dependent cellular changes.
- Hippocampus exhibited decreased neuronal and non-neuronal cell numbers.
- Olfactory bulb showed an initial increase then decrease in neuronal cells; proliferation decreased.
- Cerebellum had decreased neuronal cell number and density; proliferation increased.
- 'Rest of brain' had increased non-neuronal cells; proliferation decreased.
- Spinal cord showed increased cell numbers but decreased densities; proliferation increased.
Conclusions:
- Aging induces diverse and region-specific alterations in CNS cellular composition.
- Cellular changes vary significantly between brain regions and the spinal cord.
- Proliferative capacity also shows region-specific age-dependent trends, with some areas increasing and others decreasing.
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