Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients

Neurodegenerative diseases, among which one of the more common is Alzheimer’s disease, are the one of the biggest global public health challenges facing our generation because of the increasing elderly population in most countries. With the growing burden of these diseases, it is essential to discov...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Tomasz Tuzimski, Anna Petruczynik
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-05-01
Series:Molecules
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/27/10/3222
_version_ 1797497504908967936
author Tomasz Tuzimski
Anna Petruczynik
author_facet Tomasz Tuzimski
Anna Petruczynik
author_sort Tomasz Tuzimski
collection DOAJ
description Neurodegenerative diseases, among which one of the more common is Alzheimer’s disease, are the one of the biggest global public health challenges facing our generation because of the increasing elderly population in most countries. With the growing burden of these diseases, it is essential to discover and develop new treatment options capable of preventing and treating them. Neurodegenerative diseases, among which one of the most common is Alzheimer’s disease, are a multifactorial disease and therefore demand multiple therapeutic approaches. One of the most important therapeutic strategies is controlling the level of acetylcholine—a neurotransmitter in cholinergic synapses—by blocking the degradation of acetylcholine using acetylcholinesterase inhibitors such as tacrine, galantamine, donepezil and rivastigmine. However, these drugs can cause some adverse side effects, such as hepatotoxicity and gastrointestinal disorder. Thus, the search for new, more effective drugs is very important. In the last few years, different active constituents from plants have been tested as potential drugs in neurodegenerative disease therapy. The availability, lower price and less toxic effects of herbal medicines compared with synthetic agents make them a simple and excellent choice in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The empirical approach to discovering new drugs from the systematic screening of plant extracts or plant-derived compounds is still an important strategy when it comes to finding new biologically active substances. The aim of this review is to identify new, safe and effective compounds that are potential candidates for further in vivo and clinical tests from which more effective drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease could be selected. We reviewed the methods used to determine anti-Alzheimer’s disease activity. Here, we have discussed the relevance of plant-derived compounds with in vitro activity. Various plants and phytochemical compounds have shown different activity that could be beneficial in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disorders. Most often, medicinal plants and their active components have been investigated as acetylcholinesterase and/or butyrylcholinesterase activity inhibitors, modifiers of β-amyloid processing and antioxidant agents. This study also aims to highlight species with assessed efficacy, usable plant parts and the most active plant components in order to identify species and compounds of interest for further study. Future research directions are suggested and recommendations made to expand the use of medicinal plants, their formulations and plant-derived active compounds to prevent, mitigate and treat Alzheimer’s disease.
first_indexed 2024-03-10T03:19:12Z
format Article
id doaj.art-6dec595ef760487aa326ead84c4c847d
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1420-3049
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-10T03:19:12Z
publishDate 2022-05-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Molecules
spelling doaj.art-6dec595ef760487aa326ead84c4c847d2023-11-23T12:23:02ZengMDPI AGMolecules1420-30492022-05-012710322210.3390/molecules27103222Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant IngredientsTomasz Tuzimski0Anna Petruczynik1Department of Physical Chemistry, Medical University of Lublin, Chodźki 4a, 20-093 Lublin, PolandDepartment of Inorganic Chemistry, Medical University of Lublin, Chodźki 4a, 20-093 Lublin, PolandNeurodegenerative diseases, among which one of the more common is Alzheimer’s disease, are the one of the biggest global public health challenges facing our generation because of the increasing elderly population in most countries. With the growing burden of these diseases, it is essential to discover and develop new treatment options capable of preventing and treating them. Neurodegenerative diseases, among which one of the most common is Alzheimer’s disease, are a multifactorial disease and therefore demand multiple therapeutic approaches. One of the most important therapeutic strategies is controlling the level of acetylcholine—a neurotransmitter in cholinergic synapses—by blocking the degradation of acetylcholine using acetylcholinesterase inhibitors such as tacrine, galantamine, donepezil and rivastigmine. However, these drugs can cause some adverse side effects, such as hepatotoxicity and gastrointestinal disorder. Thus, the search for new, more effective drugs is very important. In the last few years, different active constituents from plants have been tested as potential drugs in neurodegenerative disease therapy. The availability, lower price and less toxic effects of herbal medicines compared with synthetic agents make them a simple and excellent choice in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The empirical approach to discovering new drugs from the systematic screening of plant extracts or plant-derived compounds is still an important strategy when it comes to finding new biologically active substances. The aim of this review is to identify new, safe and effective compounds that are potential candidates for further in vivo and clinical tests from which more effective drugs for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease could be selected. We reviewed the methods used to determine anti-Alzheimer’s disease activity. Here, we have discussed the relevance of plant-derived compounds with in vitro activity. Various plants and phytochemical compounds have shown different activity that could be beneficial in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disorders. Most often, medicinal plants and their active components have been investigated as acetylcholinesterase and/or butyrylcholinesterase activity inhibitors, modifiers of β-amyloid processing and antioxidant agents. This study also aims to highlight species with assessed efficacy, usable plant parts and the most active plant components in order to identify species and compounds of interest for further study. Future research directions are suggested and recommendations made to expand the use of medicinal plants, their formulations and plant-derived active compounds to prevent, mitigate and treat Alzheimer’s disease.https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/27/10/3222anti-Alzheimer’s disease activityplant extract componentsenzyme activity inhibitionIC<sub>50</sub> values
spellingShingle Tomasz Tuzimski
Anna Petruczynik
Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
Molecules
anti-Alzheimer’s disease activity
plant extract components
enzyme activity inhibition
IC<sub>50</sub> values
title Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
title_full Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
title_fullStr Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
title_full_unstemmed Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
title_short Determination of Anti-Alzheimer’s Disease Activity of Selected Plant Ingredients
title_sort determination of anti alzheimer s disease activity of selected plant ingredients
topic anti-Alzheimer’s disease activity
plant extract components
enzyme activity inhibition
IC<sub>50</sub> values
url https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/27/10/3222
work_keys_str_mv AT tomasztuzimski determinationofantialzheimersdiseaseactivityofselectedplantingredients
AT annapetruczynik determinationofantialzheimersdiseaseactivityofselectedplantingredients