Date Thesis Awarded

5-2024

Access Type

Honors Thesis -- Open Access

Degree Name

Bachelors of Science (BS)

Department

Neuroscience

Advisor

Pamela Hunt

Committee Members

Catherine Forestell

Tyler Meldrum

Abstract

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that leads to several cognitive deficits, including impairments in spatial memory (Alzheimer’s Association, “What is Alzheimer’s Disease?,” 2024). This is thought to occur due to atrophy in the hippocampus and cholinergic system (Ferreira-Vieira et al., 2016). Acetylcholine receptor antagonists, such as scopolamine, can mimic the effects of AD by decreasing acetylcholine activity at muscarinic receptors in the hippocampus. Scopolamine is an antiemetic that is FDA approved to treat certain kinds of nausea, but it has become a popular pharmacological model for studying the cognitive impairments associated with AD (Bajo et al., 2015). While efforts are being made to find new treatments and drug therapies for AD, it seems that little progress will be made until its complex etiology and pathophysiology is understood. In the meantime, researchers have started to look at preventative treatments, such as enriching the environment, to minimize the effects of known risk factors (Leshner et al., 2017). The present study analyzed whether zebrafish (Danio rerio) with cognitive impairments (induced by scopolamine) are able to demonstrate spatial memory after being raised in an enriched environment prior to drug administration. This was a two-by-two study with the variables being environment (enriched, impoverished) and drug (scopolamine, water). The fish were tested in a Y-maze that assessed spatial alternation, response alternation, and response repetition. The results indicated that there were no differences between groups, and that the zebrafish did not show spatial or response alternation, demonstrating that spatial memory is not in use. The zebrafish showed a slight preference towards response repetition, which is another indication towards a lack of spatial memory.

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