Abstract
Age-related morphological and functional changes in the lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) were studied in experiments on young adult (6-8 months) and old (26-28 months) male Wistar rats. It was found that during aging the neuronal density in the LHA decreased, and significant qualitative destructive and dystrophic changes in the neuronal population developed. The background impulse activity of LHA neuronal units, the mass background electrical activity recorded from this structure, and the Na+, K+-ATPase activity decreased during aging. In old rats, the rate of LHA self-stimulation was lower, and the range of reinforcing current amplitudes, which provided self-stimulation intensity close to the maximum, was narrower than in adult animals. Chronic electrical LHA stimulation in old rats ensured an increase in the lifespan and maximum life expectancy in these animals. In addition, the lifespan positively correlated with the duration of LHA stimulation. It is concluded that lowering of the functional activity of the LHA neural systems is one of the substantial aspects of the aging process, and activation of this structure in old animals by its chronic electrical stimulation can exert a geroprotective effect.
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