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Brain monoaminergic and neuropeptidergic variations in human aging

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Summary

The effect of age on the monoamines 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), noradrenaline (NA) and dopamine (DA), their metabolites 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA), homovanillic acid (HVA), 3,4-dihydr-oxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC), and the 5-HT precursor 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan (5-HTP), together with the peptides neuropeptide Y (NPY), somatostatin (SOM), and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), was studied in frontal cortex, gyrus cinguli and hypothalamus from 23 healthy control subjects, aged 16–75 years. After correcting for postmortem interval, significant decreases in gyrus cinguli NA, NPY and CRF, and hypothalamic DA, HVA, and 5-HIAA concentrations were obtained with advancing age. The involvement of the monoaminergic system in several functional abnormalities appearing in senescence is suggested. Furthermore, evidence is given of the participation of the peptidergic systems in the aging process.

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Author notes

  1. B. Arranz

    Present address: Department of Geriatric Medicine, University of Linköping, Sweden

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geriatric Medicine, University of Linköping, Sweden

    J. Marcusson

  2. Departments of Pharmacology and Psychiatry, Institut Municipal d'Investigació Mèdica, Barcelona, Spain

    B. Arranz

  3. Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Section of Neurochemistry, University of Göteborg, Mölndal Hospital, Sweden

    K. Blennow, R. Ekman & J. -E. Månsson

  4. Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Umeå, Sweden

    A. Eriksson

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  1. B. Arranz
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  2. K. Blennow
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  3. R. Ekman
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  5. J. -E. Månsson
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  6. J. Marcusson
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Arranz, B., Blennow, K., Ekman, R. et al. Brain monoaminergic and neuropeptidergic variations in human aging. J. Neural Transmission 103, 101–115 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01292620

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01292620

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