Source Paper
Environmental enrichment strengthens corticocortical interactions and reduces amyloid-β oligomers in aged mice
Marco Mainardi, Angelo Di Garbo, Matteo Caleo, Nicoletta Berardi, et al.
Source Paper
Marco Mainardi, Angelo Di Garbo, Matteo Caleo, Nicoletta Berardi, et al.
Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience • 2014
Brain aging is characterized by global changes which are thought to underlie age-related cognitive decline. These include variations in brain activity and the progressive increase in the concentration of soluble amyloid-β (Aβ) oligomers, directly impairing synaptic function and plasticity even in the absence of any neurodegenerative disorder. Considering the high social impact of the decline in brain performance associated to aging, there is an urgent need to better understand how it can be prevented or contrasted. Lifestyle components, such as social interaction, motor exercise and cognitive activity, are thought to modulate brain physiology and its susceptibility to age-related pathologies. However, the precise functional and molecular factors that respond to environmental stimuli and might mediate their protective action again pathological aging still need to be clearly identified. To address this issue, we exploited environmental enrichment (EE), a reliable model for studying the effect of experience on the brain based on the enhancement of cognitive, social and motor experience, in aged wild-type mice. We analyzed the functional consequences of EE on aged brain physiology by performing in vivo local field potential (LFP) recordings with chronic implants. In addition, we also investigated changes induced by EE on molecular markers of neural plasticity and on the levels of soluble Aβ oligomers. We report that EE induced profound changes in the activity of the primary visual and auditory cortices and in their functional interaction. At the molecular level, EE enhanced plasticity by an upward shift of the cortical excitation/inhibition balance. In addition, EE reduced brain Aβ oligomers and increased synthesis of the Aβ-degrading enzyme neprilysin. Our findings strengthen the potential of EE procedures as a non-invasive paradigm for counteracting brain aging processes.
Objective: To evaluate the effects of environmental enrichment exposure from prenatal period through postnatal development until weaning on behavioral and neurobiological outcomes in young and aged mice
This is a Developmental Environmental Enrichment Study protocol using mouse as the model organism. The procedure involves 6 procedural steps, 3 equipment items, 3 materials. Extracted from a 2014 paper published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience.
Model and subjects
mouse • C57BL/6J • male • Prenatal through P25 (weaning) for young mice; 17 months for aged mice • Not specified
Study window
~1 week study window
Core workflow
Prepare housing conditions for pregnant dams • Maintain pups in assigned housing conditions • Reposition and replace enrichment objects
Primary readouts
Key equipment and reagents
Verified items
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Pregnant dams designated for EE-YOUNG group were placed in large enriched cages 1 week before delivery together with 2-3 non-pregnant helper females. Control pregnant dams for SC-YOUNG group were left in standard cages with no helper females.
Note: Helper females were only used in EE condition
“pregnant dams were put either in EE 1 week before delivery together with 2–3 non-pregnant helper females, or left in SC, in the latter case with no helper females”
Pups born to dams in EE condition remained in large enriched cages (44 × 62 × 28 cm) with running wheel and enrichment objects. Pups born to dams in SC condition remained in standard cages (26 × 18 × 18 cm).
Note: EE cages housed 6-8 animals; SC cages housed 3 animals
“Pups were weaned at postnatal day (P) 25”
In EE cages, enrichment objects (tunnels, shelters, stairs) were repositioned twice per week and completely substituted once per week to maintain novelty.
Note: This maintenance schedule applies only to EE condition
“differently shaped objects (tunnels, shelters, stairs) that were repositioned twice a week and completely substituted once a week”
Separate pups from dams at postnatal day 25
Note: This marks the end of the developmental enrichment exposure period
“Pups were weaned at postnatal day (P) 25”
Mice from both EE and SC conditions were aged to 17 months for aged group experiments (EE-OLD and SC-OLD groups)
Note: Aged mice were maintained in their original housing conditions (EE or SC) during this period
“Aged mice (age 17 months, EE-OLD group) were placed in EE for one month after electrode implantation”
For aged mice originally reared in SC condition, place them in EE cages for one month after electrode implantation before brain sample collection
Note: This step applies only to aged mice; electrode implantation procedure details not provided in this methods section
“Aged mice (age 17 months, EE-OLD group) were placed in EE for one month after electrode implantation, then brain samples were collected”
This section explains what the experiment is doing, which readouts matter, what the data artifacts usually look like, and how the analysis should flow from raw capture to reported result.
To evaluate the effects of environmental enrichment exposure from prenatal period through postnatal development until weaning on behavioral and neurobiological outcomes in young and aged mice
Objective
To evaluate the effects of environmental enrichment exposure from prenatal period through postnatal development until weaning on behavioral and neurobiological outcomes in young and aged mice
Subjects
From papermouse • C57BL/6J • male • Prenatal through P25 (weaning) for young mice; 17 months for aged mice • Not specified
Cohort notes
From paperPregnant dams used for young mouse experiments; aged mice were 17 months old at time of EE exposure
Prepare housing conditions for pregnant dams (1 week before delivery until pup birth)
Maintain pups in assigned housing conditions (From birth through postnatal day 25)
Reposition and replace enrichment objects (Twice weekly repositioning; weekly complete substitution)
Wean pups (At P25)
Brain samples collected from aged mice
From paperNot specified in provided text
Artifact type
Endpoint measurements summarized by group or timepoint
Comparison focus
Compare endpoint magnitude between groups, timepoints, or both
Behavioral outcomes in young and aged mice (specific measures not detailed in this excerpt)
From paperNot specified in provided text
Artifact type
Endpoint measurements summarized by group or timepoint
Comparison focus
Compare endpoint magnitude between groups, timepoints, or both
Brain samples collected from aged mice
From paperRaw artifact
Per-sample or per-animal endpoint measurements collected during the experiment
Processed artifact
Structured table with cleaned measurements ready for comparison
Final reported form
Summary statistics and between-group or across-timepoint comparisons
Behavioral outcomes in young and aged mice (specific measures not detailed in this excerpt)
From paperRaw artifact
Per-sample or per-animal endpoint measurements collected during the experiment
Processed artifact
Structured table with cleaned measurements ready for comparison
Final reported form
Summary statistics and between-group or across-timepoint comparisons
Acquisition
Collect raw experimental outputs with enough metadata to preserve sample identity, condition, and timing.
Preprocessing / cleaning
Not specified in provided text
Scoring or quantification
Quantify the primary readouts for this experiment: Brain samples collected from aged mice; Behavioral outcomes in young and aged mice (specific measures not detailed in this excerpt).
Statistical comparison
Statistical method not yet structured for this page.
Reporting output
Report representative outputs alongside summary comparisons for Brain samples collected from aged mice, Behavioral outcomes in young and aged mice (specific measures not detailed in this excerpt).
Source links and direct wording from the methods section for validation and deeper review.
Citation
Marco Mainardi et al. (2014). Environmental enrichment strengthens corticocortical interactions and reduces amyloid-β oligomers in aged mice. Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience
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