Environmental enrichment and social interaction improve cognitive function and decrease reactive oxidative species in normal adult mice. (1st May 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Doulames, Vanessa; Lee, Sangmook; Shea, Thomas B.
• Is Part Of: International journal of neuroscience. Volume 124:Number 5(2014:May)
• Page Start: 369
• Page End: 376
• Publication Date: 2014-05-01
• Subjects: Nervous system -- Periodicals; 612.805
• DOI: 10.3109/00207454.2013.848441
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0020-7454

Abstract

<abstract> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>Environmental stimulation and increased social interactions stimulate cognitive performance, while decrease in these parameters can exacerbate cognitive decline as a function of illness, injury, or age. We examined the impact of environmental stimulation and social interactions on cognitive performance in healthy adult C57B1/6J mice. Mice were housed for 1 month individually or in groups of three (to prevent or allow social interaction) in either a standard environment (SE) or an enlarged cage containing nesting material and items classically utilized to stimulate exploration and activity ("enriched environment"; EE). Cognitive performance was tested by Y maze navigation and Novel Object Recognition (NOR; which compares the relative amount of time mice spent investigating a novel vs. a familiar object). Mice maintained for 1 month under isolated conditions in the SE statistically declined in performance versus baseline in the Y maze (<italic>p</italic> < 0.02; ANOVA). Performance under all other conditions did not change from baseline. Maintenance in groups in the SE statistically improved NOR (<italic>p</italic> < 0.01), whereas maintenance in isolation in the SE did not alter performance from baseline. Maintenance in the EE statistically improved performance in NOR for mice housed in groups and individually (<italic>p</italic> < 0.01). Maintenance under isolated conditions slightly increased reactive oxygen/nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) in brain. Environmental enrichment did not influence ROS/RNS. These findings indicate that environmental and social enrichment can positively influence cognitive performance in healthy adult mice, and support the notion that proactive approaches may delay age-related cognitive decline.</p> </abstract>