Online ISSN: 1945-4589

Aging | Age-related Neuroendocrine, Cognitive, and Behavioral Co-morbidities Promoted by HIV-1 Tat Expression in Male Mice

07-28-2022

“The current work provides potentially actionable information that could help to limit premature or accentuated aging in the context of HIV.”

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BUFFALO, NY- July 28, 2022 – A new research paper was published in Aging (Aging-US / Albany NY)’s Volume 14, Issue 13, entitled, “Age-related neuroendocrine, cognitive, and behavioral co-morbidities are promoted by HIV-1 Tat expression in male mice.”

In the United States, approximately 1.2 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1), with men accounting for the majority of cases (~75%). About half of HIV-infected individuals are 50 years of age and older. People living with HIV contend with an accelerated onset of age-related diseases and disorders; however, the pathophysiology underlying accelerated aging is poorly understood. 

While the mechanisms(s) are unknown, the HIV-1 trans-activator of transcription (Tat) protein disrupts neuroendocrine function in mice partly by dysregulating mitochondria and neurosteroidogenesis. 

Researchers Alaa N. Qrareya, Fakhri Mahdi, Marc J. Kaufman, Nicole M. Ashpole, and Jason J. Paris, from the University of Mississippi and Harvard Medical School’s McLean Hospital, investigated the combined effects of aging and HIV-1 Tat expression on the development of neuroHIV-like sequelae in young adult (6–8 months) and middle-aged (11–13 months) male mice to determine whether Tat precipitates age-related dysfunction.

“We hypothesized that conditional Tat expression in middle-aged male transgenic mice [Tat(+)] would promote age-related comorbidities compared to age-matched controls [Tat(−)]. We expected Tat to alter steroid hormone milieu consistent with behavioral deficits.”

Middle-aged Tat(+) mice had lower circulating testosterone and progesterone than age-matched controls and greater circulating corticosterone and central allopregnanolone than other groups. Young Tat(+) mice had greater circulating progesterone and estradiol-to-testosterone ratios. Older age or Tat exposure increased anxiety-like behavior (open field; elevated plus-maze), increased cognitive errors (radial arm water maze), and reduced grip strength. Young Tat(+), or middle-aged Tat(−), males had higher mechanical nociceptive thresholds than age-matched counterparts. Steroid levels correlated with behaviors. Thus, Tat may contribute to HIV-accelerated aging.

“In conclusion, our data suggest that older age and Tat expression exert independent and interactive effects to worsen neuroendocrine, affective, cognitive, and neuromuscular comorbidities. Novel steroid replacement therapies may be useful adjunctive therapeutics to cART in the aging HIV+ population.”

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.204166 

Corresponding Author: Jason J. Paris - Email: parisj@olemiss.edu 

Keywords: aging, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, secondary hypogonadism, trans-activating transcriptor

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About Aging-US:

Aging publishes research papers in all fields of aging research including but not limited, aging from yeast to mammals, cellular senescence, age-related diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s diseases and their prevention and treatment, anti-aging strategies and drug development and especially the role of signal transduction pathways such as mTOR in aging and potential approaches to modulate these signaling pathways to extend lifespan. The journal aims to promote treatment of age-related diseases by slowing down aging, validation of anti-aging drugs by treating age-related diseases, prevention of cancer by inhibiting aging. Cancer and COVID-19 are age-related diseases.

Aging is indexed by PubMed/Medline (abbreviated as “Aging (Albany NY)”), PubMed Central, Web of Science: Science Citation Index Expanded (abbreviated as “Aging‐US” and listed in the Cell Biology and Geriatrics & Gerontology categories), Scopus (abbreviated as “Aging” and listed in the Cell Biology and Aging categories), Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews, EMBASE, META (Chan Zuckerberg Initiative) (2018-2022), and Dimensions (Digital Science).

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