Female TgF344-AD rats exhibited early and persistent deficits in motivational and hedonic feeding compared to wildtype controls, emerging at 3-4 months and 6-7 months of age, respectively.
The TgF344-AD rat model, particularly females, exhibits early apathy-like behavior, providing a valuable tool for studying the prodromal phase of Alzheimer's disease.
p-value: p=<0.001
Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by progressive cognitive decline and has a long prodromal phase during which subclinical cognitive deficits and neuropsychiatric symptoms may begin to emerge. Apathy, defined as a lack of motivation or volition, is increasingly recognized as a core feature and a potentially early marker of AD. Despite its significance, apathy-like behavior has been underexplored in transgenic models of AD. Methods: We performed a longitudinal analysis of apathy-like behavior using the well-established TgF344-AD rat model. We compared male and female TgF344-AD and wildtype rats on hedonic (palatable food intake) and motivational (progressive ratio) assays during early (3-4 months), intermediate (6-7 months), and later (9-10 months) stages of adulthood. Results: We found that female TgF344-AD rats exhibited early and persistent deficits in motivational and hedonic feeding, emerging at 3-4 months and 6-7 months, respectively. During a battery of cognitive tests conducted after 12-14 months of age, TgF344-AD rats were impaired in spatial working memory but also showed wide-ranging deficits in exploratory behavior, which may also be indicative of an apathy-like loss of investigatory drive. Conclusion: Our findings highlight the TgF344-AD rat as a valuable model for studying early apathy-like behavior in AD and underscore the need to consider sex differences in AD research to better understand the prodromal phase of this disease.
Ostlund et al. (Mon,) conducted a other in Alzheimer's disease (animal model) (n=39). TgF344-AD genotype vs. Wildtype F344 rats was evaluated on Motivational (progressive ratio) and hedonic (palatable food intake) feeding behavior (p=<0.001). Female TgF344-AD rats exhibited early and persistent deficits in motivational and hedonic feeding compared to wildtype controls, emerging at 3-4 months and 6-7 months of age, respectively.