Transcription Profile of Aging and Cognition-Related Genes in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex.

This study focused on transcription in the medial PFC (mPFC) as a function of age and cognition. Young and aged F344 rats were characterized on tasks, attentional set shift and spatial memory, which depend on the mPFC and hippocampus, respectively. Differences in transcription associated with age and cognitive function were examined using RNA sequencing to construct transcriptomic profiles for the mPFC, white matter, and region CA1 of the hippocampus.The results indicate regional differences in vulnerability to aging associated with increased expression of immune and defense response genes and a decline in synaptic and neural activity genes. Importantly, we provide evidence for region specific transcription related to behavior. In particular, expression of transcriptional regulators and neural activity-related immediate-early genes (IEGs) are increased in the mPFC of aged animals that exhibit delayed set shift behavior; relative to age-matched animals that exhibit set shift behavior similar to younger animals.