Ageing autonomous nervous system

It is well established that the autonomic nervous system shows marked plasticity. The expression of cotransmitters and receptors shows dramatic changes during development and ageing, in nerves that remain... 

The results of the investigation of 58 adult persons who live on industry territory of North Crimea and 60 male teenagers at age 15 years and 84 children (2-14 years) in the Simferopol city showed that the children are more sensitive to the relatively low level of heavy metal concentrations than the adult (Evstafyeva et al., 2002). It is known that many toxic metals have neurotoxic effects (Arezzo et al., 1985). It was also shown that the effects of central and autonomous nervous systems of different... 

The QT interval is a dynamic physiological variable depending on multiple factors such as cardiac cycle length (heart rate), autonomic nervous system activity, age, gender, plasma electrolyte concentrations, genetic variations in ion channels involved in cardiac repolarization. In addition, circadian and seasonal variations of the QT interval have been described [93]. 

Low PA. The effect of aging on the autonomic nervous system. In Low PA, editor. Clinical autonomic disorders. 2nd ed, Philadelphia Lippincott-Raven 1977. p.161-75. 

Some cases also show dyscontrol of autonomic functions mediated by the potentially affected central noradrenergic sympathetic nervous system, with losses of norepinephrine neurons of the locus coeruleus (4). There can also be variable late neuropsychiatric disturbances that sometimes progress to a debilitating state and eventual fatality (2, 5, 6). Dementia is about six times more frequent in elderly patients with PD than without it (5). Major depression also occurs in PD, and psychosis is sometimes associated with DA agonist therapy (5-7). Mortality is 2-5-times higher among PD patients than in age-matched non-affected persons, and life expectancy is greatly reduced (8). 

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