MOLECULAR NEUROBIOLOGY OF AGING

这个子项目是许多研究子项目中利用 资源由NIH/NCRR资助的中心拨款提供。子项目和 调查员(PI)可能从NIH的另一个来源获得了主要资金， 并因此可以在其他清晰的条目中表示。列出的机构是 该中心不一定是调查人员的机构。 人类更年期的一个特征是卵巢类固醇的产生和释放减弱，如雌二醇和孕酮，这些类固醇对大脑功能有重大影响。然而，人们对肾上腺在大脑老化中的作用知之甚少。与雌性猕猴一样，雌性恒河猴卵巢和肾上腺类固醇的分泌也随着年龄的增长而发生显著变化。 类似的与年龄相关的大脑功能变化，包括认知障碍和睡眠-觉醒周期的中断。这个“科学伙伴”项目让一位高中教师有机会研究参与类固醇生物合成和新陈代谢的基因在衰老过程中是如何变化的，特别是在与学习和记忆以及睡眠-觉醒周期控制相关的大脑区域。通过阐明卵巢和肾上腺类固醇激素下降对大脑功能的交互影响，拟议的研究应该有助于为女性许多与衰老相关的疾病的治疗方法的开发奠定基础。这位教师完成了她两年的培训，并在一年一度的全国科学合作伙伴会议上展示了她的成果。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. A characteristic feature of the human menopause is an attenuation of the production and release of ovarian steroids, such as estradiol and progesterone, which have a major influence on brain function. However, much less is known about the contribution of the adrenal gland to brain aging. Like women, female rhesus macaques show marked age-related changes in the secretion of ovarian and adrenal steroids, and similar age-related functional brain changes, including cognitive impairment and disruption of their sleep-wake cycles. This "Partners-in-Science" project gives a high-school teacher the opportunity to examine how genes involved in the biosynthesis and metabolism of steroids changes during aging, especially in brain areas that are associated with learning and memory and with the control of sleep-wake cycles. By elucidating the interacting impact of declining ovarian and adrenal steroids on brain function, the proposed research should help to lay a foundation for the development of therapies for many aging-associated disorders in women. The teacher completed her 2-year training and presented her results at the annual national Partners-in-Science meeting.