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Deficits in Social Behavior Precede Cognitive Decline in Middle-Aged Mice
Flora Boyer1, Florence Jaouen1, El Chérif Ibrahim1
1Aix Marseille Univ, CNRS, Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone (INT), Marseille, France.
Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience
|April 12, 2019
Summary
Middle-aged mice show reduced social interaction despite intact memory and learning. This suggests social deficits may occur before broader cognitive decline in aging.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Aging Research
- Behavioral Biology
Background:
- Aging is associated with declines in cognitive functions like memory and learning.
- Age-related changes in social behavior are less understood and may be secondary to general cognitive impairment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether age-dependent social deficits are independent of general cognitive decline.
- To determine if social impairments precede broader cognitive deficits in aging.
Main Methods:
- A battery of behavioral tasks was used to assess various brain functions.
- Young (3-month-old) and middle-aged (9-month-old) wild-type mice were compared.
- Social interaction was measured by exposing mice to a novel juvenile mouse.
Main Results:
- No significant differences were found between age groups in learning and memory tasks.
- Middle-aged mice exhibited significantly reduced social interaction compared to young mice.
- Social impairments were observed in the absence of overt cognitive decline.
Conclusions:
- Social behavioral deficits may emerge independently of general cognitive aging.
- Social circuits appear selectively vulnerable during the aging process.
- These findings highlight a potential dissociation between cognitive and social aging.
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