Dietary Cholesterol Alters Memory and Synaptic Structural Plasticity in Young Rat Brain

Overview

Journal Neurol Sci

Specialty Neurology

Date 2012 Nov 29

PMID 23187788

Citations 12

Authors

Bai-Liu Ya

Wen-Yan Liu

Feng Ge

Yan-Xia Zhang

Bao-Liang Zhu

Bo Bai

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Cholesterol plays an important role in synaptic plasticity, learning and memory. To better explore how dietary cholesterol contributes to learning and memory and the related changes in synaptic structural plasticity, rats were categorized into a regular diet (RD) group and a cholesterol-enriched diet (CD) group, and were fed with respective diet for 2 months. Dietary cholesterol impacts on learning and memory, hippocampal synaptic ultrastructure, expression levels of postsynaptic density-95 (PSD-95), synaptophysin (SYP) and cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1R) were investigated. We found CD rats had better performances in learning and memory using Morris water maze and object recognition test than RD rats. The memory improvement was accompanied with alterations of synaptic ultrastructure in the CA1 area of the hippocampus evaluated by electron microscopy, enhanced immunoreactivity of SYP, a presynaptic marker in hippocampus detected by immunocytochemistry, as well as increased levels of PSD-95, SYP and decreased level of CB1R in brains of CD rats determined by Western blot. Taken together, the results suggest that the improvement of learning and memory abilities of the young adult rats induced by dietary cholesterol may be linked with changes in synaptic structural plasticity in the brain.

Citing Articles

A Comorbid Rat Model of Neuroendocrine-Immune System Alterations Under the Impact of Risk Factors for Stroke.

Ya B, Li X, Wang J, Zhao M, Yu T, Wang H Front Aging Neurosci. 2022; 13:827503.

PMID: 35126096 PMC: 8811044. DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.827503.

Potential improvements of the cognition of piglets through a synbiotic supplementation from 1 to 28 days via the gut microbiota.

Parois S, Eicher S, Lindemann S, Marchant J Sci Rep. 2021; 11(1):24113.

PMID: 34916559 PMC: 8677727. DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-03565-5.

Room for Two: The Synaptophysin/Synaptobrevin Complex.

White D, Stowell M Front Synaptic Neurosci. 2021; 13:740318.

PMID: 34616284 PMC: 8488437. DOI: 10.3389/fnsyn.2021.740318.

Simvastatin impairs hippocampal synaptic plasticity and cognitive function in mice.

Guo Y, Zou G, Qi K, Jin J, Yao L, Pan Y Mol Brain. 2021; 14(1):41.

PMID: 33627175 PMC: 7905661. DOI: 10.1186/s13041-021-00758-x.

27-Hydroxycholesterol Alters Synaptic Structural and Functional Plasticity in Hippocampal Neuronal Cultures.

Wang Y, An Y, Zhang D, Yu H, Zhang X, Wang Y J Neuropathol Exp Neurol. 2019; 78(3):238-247.

PMID: 30753597 PMC: 7967841. DOI: 10.1093/jnen/nlz002.

References

Ghribi O, Larsen B, Schrag M, Herman M . High cholesterol content in neurons increases BACE, beta-amyloid, and phosphorylated tau levels in rabbit hippocampus. Exp Neurol. 2006; 200(2):460-7. DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2006.03.019. View

Morris R . Developments of a water-maze procedure for studying spatial learning in the rat. J Neurosci Methods. 1984; 11(1):47-60. DOI: 10.1016/0165-0270(84)90007-4. View

Babic M, Zinsmaier K . Memory, synapse stability, and β-adducin. Neuron. 2011; 69(6):1039-41. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2011.03.004. View

REHM H, Wiedenmann B, Betz H . Molecular characterization of synaptophysin, a major calcium-binding protein of the synaptic vesicle membrane. EMBO J. 1986; 5(3):535-41. PMC: 1166795. DOI: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1986.tb04243.x. View

Blalock E, Chen K, Sharrow K, Herman J, Porter N, Foster T . Gene microarrays in hippocampal aging: statistical profiling identifies novel processes correlated with cognitive impairment. J Neurosci. 2003; 23(9):3807-19. PMC: 6742177. View

de Lima M, Laranja D, Bromberg E, Roesler R, Schroder N . Pre- or post-training administration of the NMDA receptor blocker MK-801 impairs object recognition memory in rats. Behav Brain Res. 2004; 156(1):139-43. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2004.05.016. View

Hampson R, Miller F, Palchik G, Deadwyler S . Cannabinoid receptor activation modifies NMDA receptor mediated release of intracellular calcium: implications for endocannabinoid control of hippocampal neural plasticity. Neuropharmacology. 2011; 60(6):944-52. PMC: 3059900. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2011.01.039. View

Li L, Cao D, Kim H, Lester R, Fukuchi K . Simvastatin enhances learning and memory independent of amyloid load in mice. Ann Neurol. 2006; 60(6):729-39. DOI: 10.1002/ana.21053. View

Darwish D, Wang D, Konat G, Schreurs B . Dietary cholesterol impairs memory and memory increases brain cholesterol and sulfatide levels. Behav Neurosci. 2010; 124(1):115-123. PMC: 3066467. DOI: 10.1037/a0018253. View

10.

Yang G, Pan F, Gan W . Stably maintained dendritic spines are associated with lifelong memories. Nature. 2009; 462(7275):920-4. PMC: 4724802. DOI: 10.1038/nature08577. View

11.

Bourne J, Harris K . Coordination of size and number of excitatory and inhibitory synapses results in a balanced structural plasticity along mature hippocampal CA1 dendrites during LTP. Hippocampus. 2010; 21(4):354-73. PMC: 2891364. DOI: 10.1002/hipo.20768. View

12.

Guo J, Chi S, Xu H, Jin G, Qi Z . Effects of cholesterol levels on the excitability of rat hippocampal neurons. Mol Membr Biol. 2008; 25(3):216-23. DOI: 10.1080/09687680701805541. View

13.

Kwon S, Chapman E . Synaptophysin regulates the kinetics of synaptic vesicle endocytosis in central neurons. Neuron. 2011; 70(5):847-54. PMC: 3136197. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2011.04.001. View

14.

Bari M, Battista N, Fezza F, Finazzi-Agro A, Maccarrone M . Lipid rafts control signaling of type-1 cannabinoid receptors in neuronal cells. Implications for anandamide-induced apoptosis. J Biol Chem. 2005; 280(13):12212-20. DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M411642200. View

15.

Ehrlich D, Pirchl M, Humpel C . Effects of long-term moderate ethanol and cholesterol on cognition, cholinergic neurons, inflammation, and vascular impairment in rats. Neuroscience. 2012; 205:154-66. PMC: 3314917. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.12.054. View

16.

Mailman T, Hariharan M, Karten B . Inhibition of neuronal cholesterol biosynthesis with lovastatin leads to impaired synaptic vesicle release even in the presence of lipoproteins or geranylgeraniol. J Neurochem. 2011; 119(5):1002-15. DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-4159.2011.07474.x. View

17.

Miller S, Wehner J . Cholesterol treatment facilitates spatial learning performance in DBA/2Ibg mice. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 1994; 49(1):257-61. DOI: 10.1016/0091-3057(94)90487-1. View

18.

Rivera P, Luque-Rojas M, Pastor A, Blanco E, Pavon F, Serrano A . Diet-dependent modulation of hippocampal expression of endocannabinoid signaling-related proteins in cannabinoid antagonist-treated obese rats. Eur J Neurosci. 2012; 37(1):105-17. DOI: 10.1111/ejn.12012. View

19.

Restivo L, Vetere G, Bontempi B, Ammassari-Teule M . The formation of recent and remote memory is associated with time-dependent formation of dendritic spines in the hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex. J Neurosci. 2009; 29(25):8206-14. PMC: 6666032. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0966-09.2009. View

20.

Frank C, Rufini S, Tancredi V, Forcina R, Grossi D, DArcangelo G . Cholesterol depletion inhibits synaptic transmission and synaptic plasticity in rat hippocampus. Exp Neurol. 2008; 212(2):407-14. DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2008.04.019. View