Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies

Inflammation has a key role in driving memory/cognitive impairment in conditions ranging from Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury, stroke and cerebral malaria. The current study analyses evidence for a therapeutic role of medicinal plants in...

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Main Authors: Sheena E.B. Tyler, Luke D.K. Tyler
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2023-09-01
Series:Brain Disorders
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666459323000318
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author Sheena E.B. Tyler
Luke D.K. Tyler
author_facet Sheena E.B. Tyler
Luke D.K. Tyler
author_sort Sheena E.B. Tyler
collection DOAJ
description Inflammation has a key role in driving memory/cognitive impairment in conditions ranging from Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury, stroke and cerebral malaria. The current study analyses evidence for a therapeutic role of medicinal plants in targeting this inflammation. Plant species with therapeutic effects of memory improvement were identified from ethnomedical surveys worldwide. The findings reveal that an increasing number of such plants can target crucial regulators of inflammation, via inhibiting multiple signalling pathways including NF-κB, C/EBPβ, ERK/JNK, p38 MAPK, PI3K/Akt, Notch and Wnt, and their downstream pro-inflammatory mediators. The plants reduced other pathologies impacted by inflammation and the crosstalk between them, including lowered amyloid β, tau and oxidative stress, AChE inhibition, inducing autophagy and neurogenesis, anti-microbial activity, toxic metal chelation and gut microbiota modulation. Of 251 plant species with reports of memory improvement, up to 94% demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity. In particular, the therapeutic effects reinforce evidence that inflammation drives Alzheimer's progression. Phytochemicals for which anti-inflammatory activity could be experimentally demonstrated were discovered for 110 plant species. These phytochemicals exhibited diverse molecular structures, including novel ones. Future directions describe technological developments to assess clinical effectiveness of phytochemicals to reach their intended CNS targets, and discern their ability to target the critical players in inflammation and its crosstalk with inflammation-related pathologies. Since the causes of some of these medical conditions, such as Alzheimer's, are still unclear, these new research strategies raise expectations for a much needed breakthrough of knowledge into underlying causal mechanisms of inflammation in memory/cognitive loss.
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spelling doaj.art-4e06fd75d4c0458c8d978a6b6d1835632023-11-05T04:05:35ZengElsevierBrain Disorders2666-45932023-09-0111100094Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologiesSheena E.B. Tyler0Luke D.K. Tyler1John Ray Research Field Station, Cheshire, United Kingdom; Corresponding author.School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Gwynedd, United KingdomInflammation has a key role in driving memory/cognitive impairment in conditions ranging from Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injury, stroke and cerebral malaria. The current study analyses evidence for a therapeutic role of medicinal plants in targeting this inflammation. Plant species with therapeutic effects of memory improvement were identified from ethnomedical surveys worldwide. The findings reveal that an increasing number of such plants can target crucial regulators of inflammation, via inhibiting multiple signalling pathways including NF-κB, C/EBPβ, ERK/JNK, p38 MAPK, PI3K/Akt, Notch and Wnt, and their downstream pro-inflammatory mediators. The plants reduced other pathologies impacted by inflammation and the crosstalk between them, including lowered amyloid β, tau and oxidative stress, AChE inhibition, inducing autophagy and neurogenesis, anti-microbial activity, toxic metal chelation and gut microbiota modulation. Of 251 plant species with reports of memory improvement, up to 94% demonstrated anti-inflammatory activity. In particular, the therapeutic effects reinforce evidence that inflammation drives Alzheimer's progression. Phytochemicals for which anti-inflammatory activity could be experimentally demonstrated were discovered for 110 plant species. These phytochemicals exhibited diverse molecular structures, including novel ones. Future directions describe technological developments to assess clinical effectiveness of phytochemicals to reach their intended CNS targets, and discern their ability to target the critical players in inflammation and its crosstalk with inflammation-related pathologies. Since the causes of some of these medical conditions, such as Alzheimer's, are still unclear, these new research strategies raise expectations for a much needed breakthrough of knowledge into underlying causal mechanisms of inflammation in memory/cognitive loss.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666459323000318Memory impairmentMedicinal plantNeuro-inflammation
spellingShingle Sheena E.B. Tyler
Luke D.K. Tyler
Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
Brain Disorders
Memory impairment
Medicinal plant
Neuro-inflammation
title Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
title_full Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
title_fullStr Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
title_full_unstemmed Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
title_short Reversing memory/cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
title_sort reversing memory cognitive impairment with medicinal plants targeting inflammation and its crosstalk with other pathologies
topic Memory impairment
Medicinal plant
Neuro-inflammation
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666459323000318
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