Abstract
Previous studies have shown that exercise can prevent white matter atrophy in APP/PS1 transgenic Alzheimer’s disease (AD) mice. However, the mechanism of this protective effect remains unknown. To further understand this issue, we investigated the effects of exercise on the blood supply of white matter in transgenic AD mice. Six-month-old male APP/PS1 mice were randomly divided into a control group and a running group, and age-matched non-transgenic littermates were used as a wild-type control group. Mice in the running group ran on a treadmill at low intensity for four months. Then, spatial learning and memory abilities, white matter and white matter capillaries were examined in all mice. The 10-month-old AD mice exhibited deficits in cognitive function, and 4 months of exercise improved these deficits. The white matter volume and the total length, total volume and total surface area of the white matter capillaries were decreased in the 10-month-old AD mice, and 4 months of exercise dramatically delayed the changes in these parameters in the AD mice. Our results demonstrate that even low-intensity running exercise can improve spatial learning and memory abilities, delay white matter atrophy and protect white matter capillaries in early-stage AD mice. Protecting capillaries might be an important structural basis for the exercise-induced protection of the structural integrity of white matter in AD.
Highlights
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive cognitive and memory dysfunction [1]
After the running exercise intervention, the performance of the Alzheimer’s disease (AD) Runner mice was significantly better than that of the AD Control mice
Our results indicated that treadmill running www.impactjournals.com/oncotarget exercise could improve spatial learning and memory in transgenic AD mice
Summary
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by progressive cognitive and memory dysfunction [1]. Previous studies have reported that spiral-like vascular structures, resulting in vascular tortuosity and occlusion, are often associated with white matter lesions in AD [6]. Research has suggested that in early-stage AD, damage to the structural integrity of white matter is closely related to cognitive decline [9,10,11,12,13]. Researchers have speculated that capillary changes within white matter might be a crucial cause of cognitive decline in AD and a potential target for AD treatment [14, 15]. Few studies have investigated www.impactjournals.com/oncotarget capillary changes within the white matter of early-stage AD patients or AD mice using accurate three-dimensional quantitative methods
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