Abstract
Increase in the quality of life, combined with drug strategies, has been studied as possibilities for improving memory and delaying the onset of neurodegenerative diseases. A previous study published by the group of the authors has shown that microdose lithium and enriched environment can improve memory in both mice and humans. To elucidate this relationship better, this study aimed to evaluate whether the chronic combination of these two strategies could increase healthy aging in Senescence Accelerated Mouse-Prone 8 (SAMP8). Animals were submitted to either one or both of these strategies until the age of 10 months when they were anesthetized and killed and their hippocampus was extracted. The untreated SAMP-8 group exhibited worse memory and reduced neuronal density with greater neurodegeneration and increased amyloid-β plaque density compared with the control group. Moreover, significant alterations in proteins related to long-term potentiation, such as, synaptophysin and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), were observed in this group. The strategies used in the study maintained long-term memory, reduced anxiety, and increased neuroprotection. Both strategies were efficient in reducing neurodegeneration and increasing parameters related to memory maintenance. In many experiments, the combination of the two strategies was more effective in improving healthy aging. This study sheds light on the combination of strategies that choose to improve the quality of life and drugs with low side effects. Moreover, it opens perspectives for a new field of study for healthy aging.