Impact of Surgical Mouse Model of Large Arterial Stiffening on Cognition

The carotid calcification surgery significantly decreased compliance of the carotid artery in vivo and demonstrated successful stiffening of the large artery. The preliminary data suggest this reduced compliance impairs cognition, specifically spatial learning abilities, but whether the effect is greater in P301S mice is unclear. This model will further be used to investigate whether the carotid calcification surgery accelerates development of tau pathology seen in the P301S mice.