Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37709153›Full record

ArticleBrain, behavior, and immunity2023

Sex differences in microglia function in aged rats underlie vulnerability to cognitive decline.

Louise M Ince, Jeffrey S Darling, Kevin Sanchez, Kiersten S Bell, Jennifer K Melbourne, Lourdes K Davis, Kimberly Nixon, Andrew D Gaudet, Laura K Fonken

Open access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Brain, behavior, and immunity, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
21citing papers in PubMed
2.9field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

21 citing papers in PubMed, 24 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Sex-specific role of microglia in ΔNeuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Louise M InceDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Jeffrey S DarlingDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Kevin SanchezDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Kiersten S BellDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Jennifer K MelbourneDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Lourdes K DavisDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA; Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Kimberly NixonDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Andrew D GaudetInstitute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA; Department of Neurology, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA.
Laura K FonkenDivision of Pharmacology & Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA; Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA. Electronic address: laura.fonken@austin.utexas.edu.
The University of Texas at Austin · USAustin College · US

Funding

Disrupted Circadian Regulation of Cell Migration at CNS-Immune Interfaces in Aging and Alzheimer's DiseaseR01AG078758 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI Laura K Fonken · 2022 to 2026
$2.9M
Targeting age-related neuroinflammation and postoperative cognitive decline: a microbial-based approachR01AG062716 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI FONKEN, LAURA K · 2020 to 2024
$2.4M
Microglia and Adolescent Susceptibility to Developing an Alcohol Use DisorderR01AA025591 · NIAAA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI NIXON, KIMBERLY · 2017 to 2021
$2.1M
Circadian control of neuroinflammation after spinal cord injuryR01NS131806 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI Andrew David Gaudet · 2023 to 2026
$1.9M
The Role of Microglia in Adolescent Ethanol-Induced Corticolimbic DamageF32AA029928 · NIAAA · UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN · PI MELBOURNE, JENNIFER KATE · 2021 to 2023
$90k
NIAAA NIH HHS F32 AA029928NIAAA NIH HHS R01 AA025591NIA NIH HHS R01 AG062716NIA NIH HHS R01 AG078758NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS131806
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aging is associated with a significant shift in immune system reactivity ("inflammaging"), as basal inflammation increases but protective responses to infection are compromised. The immune system exhibits considerable sex differences, which may influence the process of inflammaging, including immune cell activation and behavioral consequences of immune signaling (i.e., impaired memory). Here, we test the hypothesis that sex differences in immune aging may mediate sex differences in cognitive decline. Aged male and female rats received peripheral immune stimulation using lipopolysaccharide (LPS), then molecular, cellular, and behavioral outcomes were assessed. We observed that LPS-treated aged male rats showed cognitive impairment and increased neuroinflammatory responses relative to adult males. In contrast, aged female rats did not display these aging-related deficits. Using transcriptomic and flow cytometry analyses, we further observed significant age- and sex- dependent changes in immune cell populations in the brain parenchyma and meninges, indicating a broad shift in the neuroinflammatory environment that may potentiate these behavioral effects. Ovariectomized aged female rats were also resistant to inflammation-induced memory deficits, indicating that ovarian hormones are not required for the attenuated neuroinflammation in aged females. Overall, our results indicate that males have amplified inflammatory priming with age, which contributes to age-associated cognitive decline. Our findings highlight sexual dimorphism in mechanisms of aging, and suggest that sex is a crucial consideration for identifying therapies for aging and neuroinflammation.

Indexed as

Cognitive DysfunctionMicrogliaAnimalsFemaleInflammationLipopolysaccharidesMaleNeuroinflammatory DiseasesRatsSex CharacteristicsLipopolysaccharidesAgingBehaviorMicrogliaNeuroinflammationSex differences

Identifiers

PMID37709153
PMCPMC10790303
OpenAlexW4386648150

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.