Decrease of Choline Acetyltransferase Activity of Rat Cortex Capillaries with Aging

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Abstract
Choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) activity was estimated in brain cortex capillaries isolated from 3‐, 12‐, 18‐, and 24‐month‐old rats. Maximum enzymatic activity was found at 12 months (55 ± 0.3 pmol · mg−1 protein · min−1; mean ± SEM) and then it decreased to reach a minimum at 24 months (34 ± 3.1 pmol · mg−1 protein · min−1). A less marked decrease of enzymatic activity was also found in cortex homogenate and in a synaptosomal fraction obtained from the same groups of rats. Loss of ChAT of brain capillaries with aging could be related to a general phenomenon of cortical cholinergic deficit in that condition.