Institute of Molecular Regenerative Medicine, Paracelsus Medical University Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria.
Gerontology. 2011;57(6):559-64. doi: 10.1159/000323481. Epub 2011 Feb 11.
The hippocampus is a structure equipped with a high degree of flexibility and adaptation. In contrast to most structures of the adult central nervous system, the hippocampus can rely on a form of plasticity known as neurogenesis. The continuous provision of new neurons derived from resident adult neural stem cells appears to facilitate the execution of hippocampal-dependent tasks since reduction or blockage of neurogenesis is associated with cognitive impairments. Importantly, however, although hippocampal neurogenesis is maintained all throughout life, its levels decrease steadily along with aging. Notwithstanding some evidence that in age-matched animals neurogenesis levels and learning performance are tightly associated, these two parameters do not appear to be directly coupled when comparing individuals of various age groups. Additional components, and in particular experience, appear to play a fundamental roles in hippocampal functions. In this review, we speculate on the impact of neurogenesis level modulation on cognitive performances, putting in perspective recent studies made in the aging human population and in rodent models of aging.
海马体是一种具有高度灵活性和适应性的结构。与成年中枢神经系统的大多数结构不同，海马体可以依赖于一种称为神经发生的可塑性形式。源自常驻成年神经干细胞的新神经元的持续提供似乎有利于执行海马体依赖的任务，因为神经发生的减少或阻断与认知障碍有关。然而，重要的是，尽管海马体神经发生在整个生命过程中都得到维持，但随着年龄的增长，其水平会稳步下降。尽管有一些证据表明在年龄匹配的动物中，神经发生水平和学习表现密切相关，但在比较不同年龄组的个体时，这两个参数似乎没有直接关联。其他因素，特别是经验，似乎在海马体功能中起着至关重要的作用。在这篇综述中，我们推测神经发生水平调节对认知表现的影响，将最近在衰老人群和衰老啮齿动物模型中进行的研究置于适当的背景下。
