Effects of Ageing and Long-Term Hormone Replacement on Cholinergic Neurones in the Medial Septum and Nucleus Basalis Magnocellularis of Ovariectomized Rats

Ovariectomized aged rats, some of which received long‐term hormone replacement with oestrogen or oestrogen plus progesterone, were evaluated for the number and size of basal forebrain cholinergic neurones, as well as relative levels of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and trkA mRNA, in order to determine whether effects on basal forebrain cholinergic cell survival and function correspond with differences in cognitive performance previously described. The results show that ageing combined with long‐term loss of ovarian function produced substantial reductions in the levels of ChAT and trkA mRNA in the medial septum and nucleus basalis magnocellularis, relative to much younger ovariectomized controls. In contrast, no significant effects on the number or size of the cholinergic cells were detected, indicating that loss of ovarian function does not cause a loss of cholinergic neurones with age. Long‐term hormone replacement had no apparent effect on the number of ChAT‐positive neurones detected, and did not prevent the reductions in ChAT and trkA mRNA associated with ovariectomy and ageing. Collectively, the data suggest that ageing combined with long‐term loss of ovarian function has a severe negative impact on basal forebrain cholinergic function, but not on cholinergic cell survival per se.