Aging Triggers a Repressive Chromatin State at Bdnf Promoters in Hippocampal Neurons

Cognitive capacities decline with age, an event accompanied by the altered transcription of synaptic plasticity genes. Here, we show that the transcriptional induction of Bdnf by a mnemonic stimulus is impaired in aged hippocampal neurons. Mechanistically, this defect is due to reduced NMDA receptor (NMDAR)-mediated activation of CaMKII. Decreased NMDAR signaling prevents changes associated with activation at specific Bdnf promoters, including...