Premium
Nerve fiber hypertrophy in posterior tibial nerves of mice in response to voluntary running activity during aging
Author(s) -
Samorajski T.,
Rolsten Carolyn
Publication year - 1975
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/cne.901590407
Subject(s) - muscle hypertrophy , wheel running , peripheral , biology , anatomy , peripheral nervous system , nerve fiber , tibial nerve , turnover , central nervous system , medicine , endocrinology , stimulation , management , economics
Three‐month‐old male C57BL/10 mice were exercised by voluntary running activity in vertically revolving wheels for two hours each day until 24 months of age. Activity scores were recorded each day and the animals were regularly weighed and inspected for abnormalities. Control animals were similarly treated except that the acitvity wheels were immobilized. At the end of the exercise period, survival was 84% for the exercise group and 64% for the controls. Light microscopic examination of the posterior tibial nerve of the surviving animals showed a significant fiber hypertrophy in response to the exercise. The number of myelinated fibers in nerves from exercised animals did not differ from those of the controls. On the basis of these data, it is suggested that prolonged exercise does not prevent the loss of peripheral nerve fibers associated with age but rather, may exert an effect on the nervous system by modifying the surviving cells.