摘要
The thyroid hormones, triiodothyronine and thyroxine, play important roles in cognitive func- tion during the mammalian lifespan. However, thyroid hormones have not yet been used as a therapeutic agent for normal age-related cognitive deficits. In this study, CD-1 mice （aged 24 months） were intraperitoneally injected with levothyroxine （L-T4; 1.6 gg/kg per day） for 3 consecutive months. Our findings revealed a significant improvement in hippocampal cyto- skeletal rearrangement of actin and an increase in serum hormone levels of L-T4-treated aged mice. Furthermore, the survival rate of these mice was dramatically increased from 60% to 93.3%. The Morris water maze task indicated that L-T4 restored impaired spatial memory in aged mice. Furthermore, level of choline acetyltransferase, acetylcholine, and superoxide dismutase were in- creased in these mice, thus suggesting that a possible mechanism by which L-T4 reversed cognitive impairment was caused by increased activity of these markers. Overall, supplement of low-dosage L-T4 may be a potential therapeutic strategy for normal age-related cognitive deficits.
The thyroid hormones, triiodothyronine and thyroxine, play important roles in cognitive func- tion during the mammalian lifespan. However, thyroid hormones have not yet been used as a therapeutic agent for normal age-related cognitive deficits. In this study, CD-1 mice （aged 24 months） were intraperitoneally injected with levothyroxine （L-T4; 1.6 gg/kg per day） for 3 consecutive months. Our findings revealed a significant improvement in hippocampal cyto- skeletal rearrangement of actin and an increase in serum hormone levels of L-T4-treated aged mice. Furthermore, the survival rate of these mice was dramatically increased from 60% to 93.3%. The Morris water maze task indicated that L-T4 restored impaired spatial memory in aged mice. Furthermore, level of choline acetyltransferase, acetylcholine, and superoxide dismutase were in- creased in these mice, thus suggesting that a possible mechanism by which L-T4 reversed cognitive impairment was caused by increased activity of these markers. Overall, supplement of low-dosage L-T4 may be a potential therapeutic strategy for normal age-related cognitive deficits.
基金
supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China,No.81273416
Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities,No.XDJK2013A030
