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Updated: Feb 13, 2026

A Mouse Model for Vascular Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Based on Needle-guided Asymmetric Bilateral Common Carotid Artery Stenosis
Published on: November 22, 2024
Intermittent hypoxic perconditioning improves cognitive function in a mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment
Feiyang Jin1,2, Zhengming Tian1, Yuying Guan1
1Beijing Institute of Brain Disorders, Laboratory of Brain Disorders, Laboratory for Hypoxia Adaptation Translational Medicine, Ministry of Science and Technology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Disorders, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Big Data-Based Precision Medicine, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
Abstract:
JOURNAL/nrgr/04.03/01300535-202606000-00055/figure1/v/2026-02-11T151048Z/r/image-tiff Vascular cognitive impairment and dementia is a debilitating neurological disorder caused by chronic cerebral hypoperfusion, for which no effective causative treatments are currently available. Intermittent hypoxia has been shown to enhance cerebral blood flow in mice, but its efficacy in a model of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia remains unclear. In this study, we established a mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia by bilateral carotid artery stenosis. Intermittent hypoxia was induced before and after this stenosis. We found that intermittent hypoxia increased cerebral blood flow, oxygen saturation, and microcirculation in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus in the model mice, without causing neurovascular damage. Additionally, intermittent hypoxia significantly improved cognitive function in the mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia, with perconditioning showing greater efficacy than preconditioning. Improvements in cerebral microcirculation and blood flow were positively correlated with cognitive recovery. Even in a mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia with comorbidities induced by a high-fat, high-fructose diet, intermittent hypoxic perconditioning demonstrated protective effects on cognitive function. Proteomic analysis indicated that mitochondrial protection is a key mechanism, particularly through upregulating NDUFB8 expression and increasing the activity of mitochondrial complex I. These findings suggest that intermittent hypoxia is a potential non-invasive strategy for the prevention and treatment of vascular cognitive impairment and dementia.
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