Neuroendocrine aspects of cerebral aging.

In their study of the neuroendocrine aspects of cerebral aging the authors review the effect of glucocorticoids, their participation in the mechanisms of neuronal loss and their beneficial and destructive effects. They discuss the treatment strategies for showing the destructive aspects of aging and the effect of acetyl-L-carnitine in rats. They conclude that age-related degeneration of neural tissue is the complex result of multiple factors which synergize to cause neural destruction, including endogenous excitatory amino acids, calcium ions, endogenous proteolytic enzymes, free radicals and circulating glucocorticoids. It is considered that acetyl-L-carnitine may have protective effects in rats.