Effect of donepezil hydrochloride & aerobic exercise training on learning and memory and its mechanism of action in an Alzheimer's disease rat model.

This study was designed to explore the combined effect of donepezil hydrochloride and aerobic exercise training on learning and memory and to check its mechanism of action in an Alzheimer's disease (AD). Thirty rats were randomly divided into normal control group, model group and donepezil hydrochloride combined with aerobic exercise training group (n=10). Amyloid β-protein (Aβ1-40) was injected into rats to establish an elderly AD model. After 4 weeks of administration, changes in the spatial learning and memory of rats were tested in the Morris water maze. Choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and acetylcholinesterase (AchE) in the hippocampus and cerebral cortex were measured by colorimetry. Compared with the normal control group, rats in the model group took more time to find the platform (P<0.001) and showed a longer swimming path (P<0.001). Rats in the intervention group took less time to find the platform (P<0.001) and showed a shorter swimming path (P<0.001) in comparison to the model group. Similarly, rats in the model group showed decreased ChAT activity (P<0.001) and increased AchE activity (P<0.001) in the hippocampus and cortex as compare to the normal control group. Compared with the model group, rats in the intervention group showed increased ChAT activity (P<0.001) and decreased AchE activity (P<0.001) in the hippocampus and cortex. The study concluded that Donepezil hydrochloride combined with aerobic exercise training improved the learning and memory function of rats with AD. The mechanism was also related to improved morphological structure of hippocampal neurons, reduced loss of neuronal cells, increased ChAT content and decreased AchE content.