Modulation of adrenergic receptors during aging.

In aging there is not only a reduced density of adrenergic receptors but also a reduced capacity to adapt these receptors to a changing neuronal input or hormonal environment. A reduced density of receptors presumably would result in a decreased ability of aged individuals to respond to stimulation of these receptors, and a reduced ability to modulate these receptors would result in a decreased capacity to adapt their responses to a changing internal or external environment. Future studies should be directed at the genomic mechanisms that control receptor synthesis.