Jf. Flood et al., AGE-RELATED IMPAIRMENT IN LEARNING BUT NOT MEMORY IN SAMP8 FEMALE MICE, Pharmacology, biochemistry and behavior, 50(4), 1995, pp. 661-664
Four-month and 12-month-old SAM (Senescence Accelerated Mouse)-P8 and
-R1 female mice, either intact or ovariectomized, were trained to avoi
d foot shock in a T-maze. Mice were trained until they made their firs
t avoidance. Memory retention of this task was then tested 1 week late
r. The results indicated that P8, but not R1, female mice whether inta
ct or ovariectomized, showed an age-related learning impairment. This
impairment was more apparent in ovariectomized mice, as ovariectomy wa
s associated with a significant reduction in the mean trials to make a
n avoidance in all groups except 12-month P8 females. Of greatest inte
rest was the absence of any age-related impairment of retention in P8
females. In several previous studies, SAM-P8, but not R1, males showed
an age-related impairment of learning and memory. These results indic
ate that age-related impairment of memory in P8 mice may be inherited
in a sex-related manner, and suggests that the mechanisms involved in
the development of impaired learning and memory are different.