| dc.description.abstract | Debilitating age-related cognitive decline is a major health concern today and is associated with annual health care costs of billions of dollars. Although extensive research has focused on cognitive impairment and drug treatments, no therapies are currently available. Recent studies have enumerated the beneficial effects of caloric restriction and exercise on overall health during aging. This project investigated whether intermittent fasting, a form of caloric restriction, affects cognition across aging. We utilized four weeks of alternate day feeding of ad libitum food intake and no food in the experimental group as a model of caloric restriction. The main project includes a combination of experiments conducted to evaluate cognitive abilities (Barnes maze, a spatial learning task), and to measure synaptic transmission (hippocampal field potentials) in a mouse model of aging. The scope of my thesis includes aiding in developing the model for fasting as well as feeding and weighing the mice. Further, I was able to observe and practice hippocampal slice recordings, and became proficient in behavioral testing. Together, this and future data will compare the levels of impairment between young and aged mice, and the effect of intermittent feeding. The importance of learning about the effects of caloric restriction across aging can provide direction for how to investigate mechanisms to reduce cognitive impairments. | en |
