Muir J L
University of Wales Cardiff, UK.
Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 1997 Apr;56(4):687-96. doi: 10.1016/s0091-3057(96)00431-5.
A substantial body of literature has suggested that the memory and learning deficits associated with Alzheimer's disease and aging are attributable to degeneration of the cholinergic magnocellular neurons of the nucleus basalis of Meynert (nbM). Subsequently, lesion-induced damage to the cholinergic projections from the nbM to the neocortex has been utilized extensively as an animal model of dementia. In addition, the effect of the normal aging process on deterioration of these neurons and on cognitive function has also been examined. Such studies have revealed, for example, that many of the learning and memory impairments traditionally attributed to the cholinergic corticopetal system are not due to degeneration of the cholinergic neurons of the nbM, but instead may be due to damage of more rostral elements of the cholinergic basal forebrain system. This review will examine the contribution of behavioural animal and human studies to out understanding of the role of the basal forebrain cholinergic neurons in age-related cognitive impairments.
大量文献表明，与阿尔茨海默病和衰老相关的记忆和学习缺陷归因于迈内特基底核（nbM）胆碱能大细胞神经元的退化。随后，nbM至新皮质的胆碱能投射的损伤诱导被广泛用作痴呆症的动物模型。此外，正常衰老过程对这些神经元退化和认知功能的影响也已得到研究。例如，此类研究表明，传统上归因于胆碱能皮质向心系统的许多学习和记忆障碍并非由于nbM胆碱能神经元的退化，而是可能由于胆碱能基底前脑系统更靠前部分的损伤。本综述将探讨动物行为学研究和人体研究对我们理解基底前脑胆碱能神经元在与年龄相关的认知障碍中的作用所做的贡献。
