Enriched environment, brain nitric oxide synthase and synaptic plasticity in pre-pubertal and young rats.

LORES ARNAIZ, S.; BUSTAMANTE, J.; CZERNICZYNIEC, A.; GONZÁLEZ GERVASONI, M.; RODIL MARTÍNEZ, A.; PAGLIA, N.; LORES ARNAIZ, M.R.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Congreso; 12th Biennial Meeting of the Society for Free Radical Research International - SFRR; 2004

Society for Free Radical Research International

Male rats were assigned to enriched or standard environment at weanling or at 73 days of age, for 17 days. Half of the rats of each rearing condition were handled and trained only in the shaping phase of an 8- arms maze training. In the pre-pubertal group, enriched rats increased the ratio correct/total arms from day 1-8 of shaping, while standard rats showed a random performance. Cytosolic and mitochondrial NOS activities were 80% and 40% increased in enriched rats respectively. Western blot analysis showed a higher expression of brain mtNOS in enriched rats than in standard rats. Training also increased NOS activitiy by 82% and 68% in cytosolic and mitochondrial fractions respectively in standard reared rats. In the young group, no differences in performance and in enzyme activities were found. These results sustain the hypothesis that age, environment and training modulate neuronal plasticity through NO-dependent mechanisms.