Abstract

There is evidence that oxidative stress may play a role in the neuropathology of Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study used an aggregated beta-amyloid (A beta) injection model of AD in the rat, and a recycling conjunctive schedule of food reinforcement to examine the effects of bilateral intrahippocampal injections of aggregated A beta((1-42)) (5.0 mu l/side) on temporal discrimination, and the efficacy of the antioxidant alpha-tocopherol (150 mg/kg daily p.o.) in alleviating these effects. The results indicated that bilateral intrahippocampal injections of aggregated A beta((1-42)) detrimentally affected temporal discrimination from five-day block 31-35 post-injections until the end of the study (90 days post-injections). Daily treatment with alpha-tocopherol improved temporal discrimination under the recycling conjunctive schedule following aggregated A beta((1-42)) injections from the five-day block 61-65 days until the end of the study.