A study on cholinergic signal transduction pathways involved in short term and long term memory formation in the rat hippocampus. Molecular and cellular alterations underlying memory impairments in animal models of neurodegeneration

In this research project we studied signal transduction pathways triggered by cholinergic system and involved in short term and long term memory formation in the CA1 region of the rat hippocampus, focusing on mTOR pathway. We also evaluated memory impairments and molecular and cellular alterations of the neuron-astrocyte-microglia triad in the hippocampus, in three different animal models of neurodegeneration: normal brain aging, acute neuroinflammation induced by LPS infusion and chronic cerebral hypoperfusion induced by bilateral common carotid artery occlusion