Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking
Abstract Curiosity, or novelty seeking, is a fundamental mechanism motivating animals to explore and exploit environments to improve survival, and is also positively associated with cognitive, intrapersonal and interpersonal well-being in humans. However, curiosity declines as humans age, and the de...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Communications Biology |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-05571-x |
| _version_ | 1797414252975226880 |
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| author | Qiang Shan Ye Tian Hang Chen Xiaoli Lin Yao Tian |
| author_facet | Qiang Shan Ye Tian Hang Chen Xiaoli Lin Yao Tian |
| author_sort | Qiang Shan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Curiosity, or novelty seeking, is a fundamental mechanism motivating animals to explore and exploit environments to improve survival, and is also positively associated with cognitive, intrapersonal and interpersonal well-being in humans. However, curiosity declines as humans age, and the decline even positively predicts the extent of cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease patients. Therefore, determining the underlying mechanism, which is currently unknown, is an urgent task for the present aging society that is growing at an unprecedented rate. This study finds that seeking behaviors for both social and inanimate novelties are compromised in aged mice, suggesting that the aging-related decline in curiosity and novelty-seeking is a biological process. This study further identifies an aging-related reduction in the activity (manifesting as a reduction in spontaneous firing) of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). Finally, this study establishes that this reduction in activity causally underlies the aging-related decline in novelty-seeking behaviors. This study potentially provides an interventional strategy for maintaining high curiosity in the aged population, i.e., compensating for the reduced activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons, enabling the aged population to cope more smoothly with the present growing aging society, physically, cognitively and socioeconomically. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T05:30:21Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-826899d1e83f449f9856af0c4d3968ad |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2399-3642 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T05:30:21Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Biology |
| spelling | doaj.art-826899d1e83f449f9856af0c4d3968ad2023-12-03T12:33:08ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Biology2399-36422023-12-016111610.1038/s42003-023-05571-xReduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seekingQiang Shan0Ye Tian1Hang Chen2Xiaoli Lin3Yao Tian4Laboratory for Synaptic Plasticity, Shantou University Medical CollegeLaboratory for Synaptic Plasticity, Shantou University Medical CollegeLaboratory for Synaptic Plasticity, Shantou University Medical CollegeLaboratory for Synaptic Plasticity, Shantou University Medical CollegeChern Institute of Mathematics, Nankai UniversityAbstract Curiosity, or novelty seeking, is a fundamental mechanism motivating animals to explore and exploit environments to improve survival, and is also positively associated with cognitive, intrapersonal and interpersonal well-being in humans. However, curiosity declines as humans age, and the decline even positively predicts the extent of cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s disease patients. Therefore, determining the underlying mechanism, which is currently unknown, is an urgent task for the present aging society that is growing at an unprecedented rate. This study finds that seeking behaviors for both social and inanimate novelties are compromised in aged mice, suggesting that the aging-related decline in curiosity and novelty-seeking is a biological process. This study further identifies an aging-related reduction in the activity (manifesting as a reduction in spontaneous firing) of dopaminergic neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc). Finally, this study establishes that this reduction in activity causally underlies the aging-related decline in novelty-seeking behaviors. This study potentially provides an interventional strategy for maintaining high curiosity in the aged population, i.e., compensating for the reduced activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons, enabling the aged population to cope more smoothly with the present growing aging society, physically, cognitively and socioeconomically.https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-05571-x |
| spellingShingle | Qiang Shan Ye Tian Hang Chen Xiaoli Lin Yao Tian Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking Communications Biology |
| title | Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking |
| title_full | Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking |
| title_fullStr | Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking |
| title_short | Reduction in the activity of VTA/SNc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging-related decline in novelty seeking |
| title_sort | reduction in the activity of vta snc dopaminergic neurons underlies aging related decline in novelty seeking |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s42003-023-05571-x |
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