Learning and memory dysfunction of non-surgery cage-mates of mice with surgery.

A patient can develop cognitive dysfunction and neuroinflammation after surgery. However, it is not known whether these pathological processes occur in people who live together with surgery patients. As an initial step to address this issue in animals, 2 mice with right common carotid arterial exposure were cage-mates with 3 non-surgery mice. Their learning and memory were tested starting 5 days after surgery. Their brain tissues were harvested 1 day or 5 days after surgery. The results showed that mice with surgery and cage-mates of these surgery mice had increased pro-inflammatory cytokines in the brain and dysfunction of learning and memory. Inhibition of inflammation attenuated the cognitive impairment of the cage-mates. These results suggest that dysfunction of complex behavior including learning and memory can occur in non-surgery cage-mates of surgery mice. Additional studies are needed to determine whether this phenomenon exists in larger animals and humans.