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SERUM BIOMARKERS OF AGING IN THE BROWN NORWAY RAT
Citation:
GORDON, C. J., P. ROWSEY, B. L. Bishop, W. Ward, AND R. C. MACPHAIL. SERUM BIOMARKERS OF AGING IN THE BROWN NORWAY RAT. Experimental Gerontology. Elsevier Science Ltd, New York, NY, 46(11):953-7, (2011).
Impact/Purpose:
The life stage susceptibility team is involved in several research efforts to determine if the aged are more susceptible to environmental toxicants. Serum biomarkers that identify susceptibility to disease in aged humans are well researched, but there is little known on biomarkers in animal models of aging. Development of serum biomarkers of aging could be useful to the assessment of susceptibility in aging. This study applied a commercially available panel of 58 serum analytes to screen for possible biomarkers of aging in the Brown Norway rat, a strain commonly used in aging studies. Several key markers common in aged rats and human were identified that may be useful in future toxicological studies in the aged.
Description:
Serum biomarkers to identify susceptibility to disease in aged humans are well researched. On the other hand, our understanding of biomarkers in animal models of aging is limited. Hence, we applied a commercially available panel of 58 serum analytes to screen for possible biomarkers of aging in 4,12, and 24 month old Brown Norway rats. We found that serum levels of 5 of the 58 analytes were significantly affected by age: C-reactive protein (CRP), myoglobin, macrophage derived chemokine-2 (MDC), fibroblast growth factor-basic, and vascular cell adhesion molecule-I. Among these analytes, CRP was the only one that increased with aging. The variability of CRP and MDC-2 was relatively low compared to the other analytes of the panel. It is concluded that CRP and possibly MDC-2 are candidates for biomarkers of aging in the BN rat.
