Effect of rivastigmine on hippocampal glucose metabolism in an aged rat model

This study aimed to investigate how Rivastigmine administration affects hippocampal glucose metabolism in an aged rat model. This study utilized aged male (n=30) and female (n=30) Wistar rats (13 months old) obtained from Ondokuz Mayıs University (OMU) Experimental Medicine Research and Application Center. The study protocol was approved by the OMU Experimental Medicine Research and Application Center Animal Experiments Ethics Committee, with decision number 2024/14, dated 26.04.2024. A total of 40 rat hippocampus tissues were analyzed. The experimental animals were equally divided into four groups: Group 1: Male Control (MC) group: Administered 1 ml of Rivastigmine solvent (saline solution) for twenty-one days. Group 2: Male RIVA (MR) group: Administered 2 mg/kg Rivastigmine intraperitoneally (i.p.) in 1 ml of saline solution for twenty-one days. Group 3: Female Control (FC) group: Administered 1 ml of Rivastigmine solvent (saline solution) for twenty-one days. Group 4: Female RIVA (FR) group: Administered 2 mg/kg Rivastigmine intraperitoneally (i.p.) in 1 ml of saline solution for twenty-one days. After 21 days of experimental applications, animals were sacrificed under general anesthesia, and hippocampus tissue samples were collected. In the collected tissue samples, protein levels of total GSK3β, p-GSK3β (Ser9), total Akt, p-Akt, GLUT4, SIRT1, PSD95, and β-actin were analyzed by Western blot method. Western blot analyses were performed at the Regenerative and Restorative Medicine Research Center of Istanbul Medipol University. In this study, total GSK3β (t-GSK3β) and total Akt (t-Akt) levels were found to be significantly higher in the MR group compared to the FR group (p<0.01). Similarly, PSD95 levels were significantly higher in the MC group compared to the FR group (p<0.05). No significant differences were detected among the groups for any other measured parameters. The results of the current study suggest that Rivastigmine administration may have a limited effect on hippocampal glucose metabolism in rats. When gender comparison is made, it can be concluded that this limited effect is in favor of male rats.