Abstract β-Asarone is an active component of the Acori graminei rhizome that is a traditional Chinese medicine clinically used in treating dementia in China. However, the cognitive effect of β-asarone and its mechanism has remained elusive. Here, we used asenescence-accelerated prone 8 (SAMP8) mice, which mimic many of the salient features of Alzheimer׳s disease (AD), to further investigate whether modulation of the ROCK signaling pathway and/or autophagy, synaptic loss is involved in the effects of β-asarone on learning and memory. SAMP8 mice at the age of 6 months were intragastrically administered by β-asarone or a vehicle daily for 2 months. Senescence-accelerated-resistant (SAMR1) mice were used as the control. Our results demonstrate that autophagy and ROCK expression were increased significantly in 8 months SAMP8 mice, which were concomitant with that SAMP8 mice at the same age displayed a significant synaptic loss and cognitive deficits. The up-regulation of ROCK expression and autophage in the hippocampus of SAMP8 were significantly reduced by β-asarone, and prevents synaptic loss and improved cognitive function of the SAMP8 mice. β-asarone decreased neuronophagia and lipofuscin in the hippocampus of SAMP8 mice, but did not reduce Aβ42 levels and malondialdehyde levels and superoxide dismutase activities. Moreover, suppression of ROCK2 by siRNA significantly reduced the effects of β-asarone on the autophage and synaptic proteins expression in PC12 cells damage induced by Aβ 1–40 . Taken together, β-asarone prevents autophagy and synaptic loss by reducing ROCK expression in SAMP8 mice.
#2Sarah Millar(Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences)H-Index: 1
Last. Edmond Y W Chan(Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences)H-Index: 32
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Macroautophagy, commonly referred to as autophagy, is a protein degradation pathway that functions at a constitutive level in cells, which may become further activated by stressors such as nutrient starvation or protein aggregation. Autophagy has multiple beneficial roles for maintaining normal cellular homeostasis and these roles are related to the implications of autophagy in disease mechanisms including neurodegeneration and cancer. We previously searched for novel autophagy regulators and id...
The senescence accelerate mouse P8 (SAMP8) is an excellent model of early learning and memory problems. A number of studies have shown that it has cholinergic deficits, oxidative damage, alterations in membrane lipids and circadian rhythm disturbances. The brains of the SAMP8 overproduce amyloid precursor protein (APP), amyloid-beta protein and have an increased physphorylation of tau. An antisense to APP has been developed that reverses the cognitive deficits and oxidative damage. This antisens...
Rho-associated kinase (ROCK) regulates neural cell migration, proliferation and survival, dendritic spine morphology, and axon guidance and regeneration. There is, however, little information about whether ROCK modulates the electrical activity and information processing of neuronal circuits. At neonatal stage, ROCKα is expressed in hypoglossal motoneurons (HMNs) and in their afferent inputs, whereas ROCKβ is found in synaptic terminals on HMNs, but not in their somata. Inhibition of endogenous ...
Last. Ming-Wei Wang(Hebei Medical University)H-Index: 16
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Abstract Autophagy is responsible for the degradation of long-lived proteins and damaged organelles intracellular, even extracellular,and autophagy is proved to have relationship with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and aging. The senescence accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) was a non-genetically modified mice widely used as a rodent model of aging and senile dementia. However, little was known about the age-related changes of autophagy in the brain of SAMP8 mice. To better understand the precise relat...
Synapse elimination is the main factor responsible for the cognitive decline accompanying many of the neuropathological conditions affecting humans. Synaptic stripping of motoneurons is also a common hallmark of several motor pathologies. Therefore, knowledge of the molecular basis underlying this plastic process is of central interest for the development of new therapeutic tools. Recent advances from our group highlight the role of nitric oxide (NO) as a key molecule triggering synapse loss in ...
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a slowly progressing form of dementia characterized in its earliest stages as a loss of memory. Individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) may be in the earliest stages of the disease and represent an opportunity to identify pathological changes related to the progression of AD. Synaptic loss is one of the hallmarks of AD and associated with cognitive impairment. The inferior temporal gyrus (ITG) plays an important role in verbal fluency, a cognitive f...
Beta-amyloid (Aβ) toxicity has been postulated to initiate synaptic loss and subsequent neuronal degeneration seen in Alzheimer's disease (AD). We previously demonstrated that β-asarone improves cognitive function by suppressing neuronal apoptosis in vivo. In this study, we assessed the neuroprotective effects of β-asarone against the toxicity of Aβ in relation to the mitochondria-mediated cell death process, and to elucidated the role of the ASK1/MKK7/JNK and mitochondrial pathways in β-asarone...
In vertebrate models of synaptic plasticity, signaling via the putative “retrograde messenger” nitric oxide (NO) has been hypothesized to serve as a critical link between functional and structural alterations at pre- and postsynaptic sites. In the present study, we show that auditory Pavlovian fear conditioning is associated with significant and long-lasting increases in the expression of the postsynaptically-localized protein GluR1 and the presynaptically-localized proteins synaptophysin and sy...
#1Chengchong Li(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 7
#2Guihua Xing(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 7
Last. Yingcai Niu(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 18
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Neurodegenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease have been well investigated. However, significant methods for the treatment of the promotion and progression of Alzheimer's disease are unavailable to date. Apoptosis is a crucial pathway in neuronal loss in Alzheimer's disease patients. Thus, the suppression of apoptosis may be an effective therapeutic strategy for Alzheimer's disease. In this study, we evaluated the effect of β-asarone on β-amyloid (Aβ)-induced toxicity in cultured ...
#1Yutao Geng(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 3
#2Chengchong Li(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 7
Last. Yingcai Niu(Qiqihar Medical University)H-Index: 18
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Elevated levels of β-amyloid (Aβ) in the brains being a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been believed to play a critical role in the cognitive dysfunction that occurs in AD. Recent evidence suggests that Aβ induces neuronal apoptosis in the brain and in primary neuronal cultures. In this study, we investigated the effects of β-asarone, the major ingredient of Acorus Tatarinowii Schott, on cognitive function and neuronal apoptosis in Aβ hippocampus injection rats and its mechanism of ac...
Last. Li-Ping Zhang(ZJNU: Zhejiang Chinese Medical University)
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Extracts or active components from Acorus gramineus Aiton (EAAGA) have been clinically used for cognition impairment more than hundreds of years and are still used in modern times in China and elsewhere worldwide. Previous studies reported that EAAGA improves cognition impairment in animal models. Here, we conducted a preclinical systematic review to assess the current evidence of EAAGA for cognition impairment. We searched 7 databases up until June 2019. Methodological quality for each included...
#1Fangfang Wen(First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University)H-Index: 3
#2Weishan Zhuge(First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University)H-Index: 4
Last. Saidan Ding(First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University)H-Index: 9
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Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) was characterized for cognitive dysfunction. Insulin resistance (IR) has been identified to be correlated with the pathogenesis of MHE. Oridonin (Ori) is an active terpenoid, which has been reported to rescue synaptic loss and restore insulin sensitivity. In this study, we found that intraperitoneal injection of Ori rescued IR, reduced the autophagosome formation and synaptic loss and improved cognitive dysfunction in MHE rats. Moreover, in insulin‐resistant ...
Last. Yan-Qiang Liu(NKU: Nankai University)H-Index: 11
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: Metformin, a first-line drug for type-2 diabetes, plays a potentially protective role in preventing Alzheimer's disease (AD), but its underlying mechanism is unclear. In this study, Aβ25-35 -treated SH-SY5Y cells were used as a cell model of AD to investigate the neuroprotective effect of metformin, as well as its underlying mechanisms. We found that metformin decreased the cell apoptosis rate and death, ratio of Bcl-2/Bax, and expression of NR2A and NR2B, and increased the expression of LC3 i...
#1Bin Liu(North China University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 2
#2Jinxia Liu(North China University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 1
Last. Shiying Li(North China University of Science and Technology)H-Index: 2
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Abstract This study aimed to explore the relationship between autophagy and synaptic plasticity in the pathogenesis of vascular dementia (VD). The autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine (3-MA) and the autophagy agonist rapamycin (Rap) were injected into the lateral ventricles of rats, and a rat VD model was established using a modified four-vessel occlusion method. The expression of LC3-II, synaptophysin (Syn), and postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95) in the CA1 area of the rat hippocampus were...
Last. Wang Bin(GU: Guangzhou University)H-Index: 4
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ABSTRACT MSC transplantation has been explored as a new clinical approach to stem cell-based therapies for bone diseases in regenerative medicine due to their osteogenic capability. However, only a small population of implanted MSC could successfully reach the injured areas. Therefore, enhancing MSC migration could be a beneficial strategy to improve the therapeutic potential of cell transplantation. Catharmus tinctorius volatile oil (CTVO) was found to facilitate MSC migration. Further explorat...
Abstract Cancer is one of the major non-communicable diseases posing substantial challenges in both developing and developed countries. The options available for treatment of different cancer are associated with various limitations, including severe toxicity, drug resistance, poor outcomes and a high risk of relapse. Hence, an increased attention and necessity for screening of various phytochemicals from natural sources for superior and safer alternative has been ongoing for several decades. In ...
Icariin (ICA), a major flavonoid extracted from the Chinese tonic herb Epimedium, exerts beneficial effects in a variety of age-dependent diseases, such as Alzheimer9s disease (AD). However, the anti-aging mechanisms remain unclear. The senescence-accelerated mouse-prone 8 (SAMP8) model has been used to study age-related neurodegenerative changes associated with aging and the pathogenesis of AD. Hence, the current study was designed to examine the effect of ICA on aging and behavioral improvemen...
#1Anna Vilalta(University of Cambridge)H-Index: 12
#2Guy C. Brown(University of Cambridge)H-Index: 87
It was previously thought that neurons were phagocytosed only when dead or dying. However, it is increasingly clear that viable synapses, dendrites, axons and/or neurons can be phagocytosed alive (defined here as “neurophagy”), and this may contribute to a wide range of developmental, physiological and pathological processes. Phagocytosis of live synapses, dendrites and axons by glia, contribute to experience-dependent sculpting of neuronal networks during development, but excessive phagocytosis...
Last. Qi Wang(Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine)H-Index: 22
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: The present study aimed to investigate the possible effects and underlying molecular mechanism of Bushen‑Yizhi formula (BSYZ), a traditional Chinese medicine, on age‑related degeneration of brain physiology in senescence‑accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8) mice. SAMP8 mice (age, 6 months) were administered BSYZ (1.46, 2.92 and 5.84 g/kg/day) for 30 days. Morris water maze and step‑down tests demonstrated that BSYZ significantly improved memory impairments in SAMP8 mice. In addition, BSYZ signifi...
: Many plants are found to possess reliable pharmacological properties and have started to attract the attention of researchers. One such holistic plant is Acorus calamus, commonly known as sweet flag, belonging to the rhizomatous family Acoraceae. The different parts of this plant, such as the leaves and rhizomes, are used traditionally in different medicinal preparations for the treatment of various ailments including arthritis, neuralgia, diarrhoea, dyspepsia, kidney and liver troubles, eczem...