No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSECaffeine (a non-selective adenosine receptor antagonist) prevents memory deficits in aging and Alzheimer's disease, an effect mimicked by adenosine A2A receptor, but not A1 receptor, antagonists. Hence, we investigated the effects of adenosine receptor agonists and antagonists on memory performance and scopolamine-induced memory impairment in mice. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACHWe determined whether A2A receptors are necessary for the emergence of memory impairments induced by scopolamine and whether A2A receptor activation triggers memory deficits in naïve mice, using three tests to assess short-term memory, namely the object recognition task, inhibitory avoidance and modified Y-maze. KEY RESULTSScopolamine (1.0 mg·kg , i.p.) before the training session was sufficient to trigger memory impairment in the three tests in naïve mice, and this effect was prevented by SCH 58261 (1.0 mg·kg −1 , i.p.). Furthermore, i.c.v. administration of CGS 21680 (50 nmol) also impaired recognition memory in the object recognition task. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONSThese results show that A2A receptors are necessary and sufficient to trigger memory impairment and further suggest that A1 receptors might also be selectively engaged to control the cholinergic-driven memory impairment.

Environmental enrichment (EE) has been largely used to investigate behavioral modifications and neuroplasticity in the adult brain both in normal and pathological conditions. The interaction between individual behavioral traits with EE responsiveness has not been investigated within the same strain. By using two extremes of CF1 mice that differ by their exploratory behavior in the Open Field (OF) task (Kazlauckas V, 2005), denominated as Low (LE) and High (HE) Exploratory Mice, the present study evaluated if EE during adulthood could modify the putative differences between LE and HE mice on exploratory behavior, memory performance and hippocampal BDNF levels. To this end, we investigated the effect of adult LE and HE mice after 2 months of enriched or standard housing conditions on the open field, on novel object recognition, on the inhibitory avoidance task and on hippocampal BDNF immunocontent. LE showed low exploratory behavior, less retention in the inhibitory avoidance and lower hippocampal BDNF levels. EE enhanced exploratory behavior, memory performance and hippocampal BDNF levels both in LE and HE mice. Importantly, the general profile of LE mice submitted to EE was similar to HE mice housed in standard conditions. These results show that internalized behavior of LE mice can be significantly modified by exposure to an enriched environment even during adulthood. These observations may contribute to investigate biological mechanisms and therapeutical interventions for individuals with internalized psychiatric disorders.