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Investigations on Alterations of Hippocampal Circuit Function Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
Published on: November 19, 2012
Elevated phosphocholine and phosphatidylcholine following rat entorhinal cortex lesions
J W Geddes1, K Panchalingam, J N Keller
1Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky, Lexington 40536, USA.
Neurobiology of Aging
|May 1, 1997
Summary
Elevated phosphocholine (P-choline) in early Alzheimer's disease may indicate neuritic sprouting. This study used 31P-NMR in a rat model, finding P-choline increases mirroring early AD brain changes.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Biochemistry
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Phosphomonoesters (PMEs), including phosphocholine (P-choline), are elevated in early Alzheimer's disease (AD) and the developing brain during neurite extension.
- This suggests a potential link between PME elevation and neuritic sprouting, a process also observed in AD pathology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if elevated PMEs, specifically P-choline, in Alzheimer's disease could be indicative of neuritic sprouting.
- To model neuritic sprouting using a well-defined experimental approach.
Main Methods:
- Utilized 31P-NMR spectroscopy to analyze phospholipid metabolites and membrane phospholipids.
- Induced unilateral entorhinal cortex lesions in rats as a model of neuritic sprouting.
- Measured P-choline, phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), and inositol phosphate levels at various time points post-lesion.
Main Results:
- A significant 48% elevation in P-choline was observed in the hippocampus ipsilateral to the lesion between 2 to 7 days post-lesion.
- P-choline levels returned to baseline by 45 days post-lesion.
- Levels of membrane phospholipids PC and PE remained stable, suggesting P-choline elevation is not due to membrane breakdown or reduced synthesis.
Conclusions:
- The observed increase in P-choline following entorhinal cortex lesions in rats mimics early-stage AD phospholipid alterations.
- These findings support the hypothesis that elevated P-choline in early AD may reflect active neuritic sprouting.
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