Investigating the link between testosterone and hippocampal neurons

• Main Author: Ng, Sean
• Other Authors: Ajai Vyas
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: DRNTU::Science::Biological sciences::Human anatomy and physiology::Neurobiology
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/77757
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

The hippocampus is a critical region of the brain studied for its function. There are three main ideas for hippocampal function; (1) Memory and Learning, (2) Spatial Processing, and (3) Approach-Avoidance Conflict Decision Making. Studies testosterone shows an overlap between its effects and hippocampal function, which suggests a link between testosterone and hippocampal function. Previous studies have demonstrated that testosterone influences the hippocampal structure. The results of these studies are however conflicting, the effects of the testosterone on the hippocampus remain unclear. This study aims to investigate how testosterone affects the hippocampus by studying how it affects hippocampal neuronal morphology. The results were that testosterone decreased the total dendritic length of both CA1 and CA3 neurons. Results from this study imply that testosterone has a negative effect on hippocampal neuronal morphology. With some clinical diseases such as age-related amnesia and behavior impairments linked to hippocampal dysfunction, androgen-replacement therapy has been suggested to be a possible solution. However, since this study suggests that testosterone might have a negative effect on hippocampal neuronal morphology, the effects of androgens such as testosterone must be further investigated, to understand the efficacy of androgen-replacement therapy for such diseases.