Source Paper
Attenuation of age-related changes in mouse neuromuscular synapses by caloric restriction and exercise
Gregorio Valdez, Juan C. Tapia, Hyuno Kang, Gregory D. Clemenson, F. H. Gage et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences • 2010
Caloric Restriction Intervention Study
Objective: To assess the effects of a lifelong calorie-restricted diet on age-related synaptic abnormalities, motor neuron loss, and muscle fiber turnover in 24-month-old mice, and to compare these effects with exercise intervention
This is a Caloric Restriction Intervention Study protocol using mouse as the model organism. The procedure involves 6 procedural steps, 2 equipment items. Extracted from a 2010 paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Model and subjects
mouse • Not specified in provided text • unknown • 24 months old (with comparisons to young adult and 18-month-old mice) • Not specified in provided text
Study window
Estimated timing pending
Core workflow
Establish caloric restriction intervention • Establish exercise intervention group • Assess neuromuscular junction structure
Primary readouts
- Incidence of pre- and postsynaptic abnormalities
- Axonal swellings
- Axonal sprouting
- Synaptic detachment
Key equipment and reagents
Use this page as an execution guide, then fall back to the source paper whenever you need exact exclusions, dosing details, or assay-specific caveats.
Confirm first
- Verify the animal model, intervention setup, and collection timepoints against the source paper.
- Check that every direct vendor link matches the exact specification your lab plans to run.
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- Work through the protocol steps in order and use the inline vendor chips only when you need to source or verify an item.
- Jump to Experimental Context for readouts, data shape, and analysis flow before planning downstream analysis.
Protocol Steps
Start here. The step list is optimized for running the experiment, with direct vendor links available inline when you need to source a cited item.
Establish caloric restriction intervention
Implement a lifelong calorie-restricted diet in mice from early age through 24 months
Note: This is a chronic intervention spanning the entire lifespan of the animals
View evidence from paper
“A life-long calorie-restricted diet significantly decreased the incidence of pre- and postsynaptic abnormalities in 24-mo-old mice”
Establish exercise intervention group
Provide wheel running exercise to 22-month-old mice
Note: Exercise intervention was applied later in life compared to caloric restriction which was lifelong
View evidence from paper
“One month of exercise (wheel running) in 22-mo-old mice also reduced age-related synaptic changes”
Assess neuromuscular junction structure
Examine skeletal neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) for age-related structural alterations including axonal swellings, sprouting, synaptic detachment, axonal withdrawal, and postsynaptic fragmentation
Note: Comparisons made between young adult, 18-month-old, and 24-month-old mice
View evidence from paper
“Comparison of NMJs in young adult and aged mice revealed a variety of age-related structural alterations, including axonal swellings, sprouting, synaptic detachment, partial or complete withdrawal of axons from some postsynaptic sites, and fragmentation of the postsynaptic specialization”
Quantify motor neuron loss
Count and assess motor neuron numbers to determine age-related motor neuron loss and effects of interventions
Note: Caloric restriction attenuated age-related loss of motor neurons; exercise had no effect on motor neuron number
View evidence from paper
“A life-long calorie-restricted diet significantly decreased the incidence of pre- and postsynaptic abnormalities in 24-mo-old mice and attenuated age-related loss of motor neurons”
Assess muscle fiber turnover
Evaluate muscle fiber turnover rates to determine age-related changes and intervention effects
Note: Caloric restriction attenuated age-related muscle fiber turnover; exercise had no effect on muscle fiber turnover
View evidence from paper
“A life-long calorie-restricted diet significantly decreased the incidence of pre- and postsynaptic abnormalities in 24-mo-old mice and attenuated age-related loss of motor neurons and turnover of muscle fibers”
Perform time-lapse in vivo imaging
Use time-lapse imaging to visualize and document synaptic alterations in living mice over time, particularly to assess whether exercise can reverse already-occurring synaptic changes
Note: This imaging revealed that exercise partially reversed synaptic alterations that had already occurred
View evidence from paper
“Time-lapse imaging in vivo revealed that exercise partially reversed synaptic alterations that had already occurred”