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Medical AI Inquiry: You was designed to assist in medical decision-making based on the provided user questions. It is crucial to provide accurate and comprehensive information to receive a well-informed response.  Labels: BACKGROUND, METHODS, RESULTS. Meshes: .
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Does exercise maintain Dendritic Complexity in an Animal Model of PTSD? Context: This study examined the effect of endurance exercise on dendritic arborization in the dentate gyrus (DG) subregion in rodents exposed to a predator-scent stress (PSS). Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to one of four treatment groups. In two of the groups rats were unexposed to PSS but either remained sedentary (SED+UNEXP) or were exercised (EX+UNEXP). In the other two groups rats were exposed to the PSS but either remained sedentary (SED+PSS) or were exercised (EX+PSS). Following 6-weeks of either exercise or a sedentary lifestyle rats were exposed to either the PSS or a sham protocol. During exercise the animals ran on a treadmill at 15 m[BULLET OPERATOR]min, 5 min[BULLET OPERATOR]day gradually increasing to 20 min[BULLET OPERATOR]day, 5 days·week for 6 weeks. Eight days following exposure to either PSS or sham protocol changes in the cytoarchitecture (dendritic number, dendritic length and dendrite spine density) of the DG subregion of the hippocampus was assessed. No differences (p = 0.493) were noted in dendritic number between the groups. However, dendritic length and dendrite spine density for SED+ PSS was significantly smaller (p< 0.001) than that observed in all other groups. In addition, neurons from animals in SED+PSS had significantly fewer (p< 0.001) dendritic intersections than all other groups.
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The results of this study indicate that 6-weeks of endurance training can protect dendritic length and complexity suggesting a degree of resiliency to stress. This provides further evidence for supporting the inclusion of an exercise regimen for reducing the risk of PTSD. Final Decision: yes