Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative pathology characterized by the presence of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, accompanied by synaptic and neuronal loss. The major component of senile plaques is an amyloid ␤ protein (A␤) formed by pathological processing of the A␤ precursor protein. We assessed the time-course and regional effects of a single intracerebroventricular injection of aggregated A␤ fragment 25-35 (A␤ 25-35 ) in rats. Using a combined biochemical, behavioral, and morphological approach, we analyzed the peptide effects after 1, 2, and 3 weeks in the hippocampus, cortex, amygdala, and hypothalamus. The scrambled A␤ 25-35 peptide was used as negative control. The aggregated forms of A␤ peptides were first characterized using electron microscopy, infrared spectroscopy, and Congo Red staining. Intracerebroventricular injection of A␤ 25-35 decreased body weight, induced short-and long-term memory impairments, increased endocrine stress, cerebral oxidative and cellular stress, neuroinflammation, and neuroprotective reactions, and modified endogenous amyloid processing, with specific time-course and regional responses. Moreover, A␤ 25-35 , the presence of which was shown in the different brain structures and over 3 weeks, provoked a rapid glial activation, acetylcholine homeostasis perturbation, and hippocampal morphological alterations. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative pathology characterized by the presence of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, accompanied by synaptic and neuronal loss in brain areas responsible for learning and memory impairments. 1 The major component of senile plaques is an amyloid ␤ protein (A␤) derived from amyloid precursor protein (APP). Genetic, cell biological, and postmortem studies on AD brain, together with A␤ neurotoxicity findings, gave rise to the amyloid cascade hypothesis to explain A␤-associated neurodegenerative processes. 2 In normal healthy individuals, A␤ peptides are present only in small quantities, as soluble monomers that circulate in cerebrospinal fluid and blood. In AD patients, A␤ peptides, which vary in length from 40 to 43 amino acids, accumulate as insoluble fibrillar deposits. 3 When cultured rat hippocampal neurons are exposed to aggregated A␤ peptides, their neurites adopt a dystrophic appearance and become comparable to those observed surrounding and infiltrating senile plaques. This observation suggested that A␤ is responsible for the neuritic abnormalities in AD pathology. 4 Structure-activity studies revealed that peptides containing the highly hydrophobic 25-35 region formed stable aggregates and mediated neuronal death by necrosis or apoptosis. 5,6,7 The truncated A␤ 25-35 fragment includes extracellular and intramembrane residues that have been reported to represent an active region of A␤. 8

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative pathology associated with aging characterized by the presence of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles that finally result in synaptic and neuronal loss. The major component of senile plaques is an amyloid-β protein (Aβ). Recently, we characterized the effects of a single intracerebroventricular (icv) injection of Aβ fragment (25–35) oligomers (oAβ25–35) for up to 3 weeks in rats and established a clear parallel with numerous relevant signs of AD. To clarify the long-term effects of oAβ25–35 and its potential role in the pathogenesis of AD, we determined its physiological, behavioral, biochemical and morphological impacts 6 weeks after injection in rats. oAβ25–35 was still present in the brain after 6 weeks. oAβ25–35 injection did not affect general activity and temperature rhythms after 6 weeks, but decreased body weight, induced short- and long-term memory impairments, increased corticosterone plasma levels, brain oxidative (lipid peroxidation), mitochondrial (caspase-9 levels) and reticulum stress (caspase-12 levels), astroglial and microglial activation. It provoked cholinergic neuron loss and decreased brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels. It induced cell loss in the hippocampic CA subdivisions and decreased hippocampic neurogenesis. Moreover, oAβ25–35 injection resulted in increased APP expression, Aβ1–42 generation, and increased Tau phosphorylation. In conclusion, this in vivo study evidenced that the soluble oligomeric forms of short fragments of Aβ, endogenously identified in AD patient brains, not only provoked long-lasting pathological alterations comparable to the human disease, but may also directly contribute to the progressive increase in amyloid load and Tau pathology, involved in the AD physiopathology.

Tetrahydro-N, N-dimethyl-2, 2-diphenyl-3-furanmethanamine hydrochloride (ANAVEX2-73) binds to muscarinic acetylcholine and sigma(1) (σ(1)) receptors with affinities in the low micromolar range. We characterized its anti-amnesic and neuroprotective potentials in pharmacological and pathological amnesia models. Spatial working memory was evaluated using spontaneous alternation in the Y-maze and non-spatial memory using passive avoidance procedures. ANAVEX2-73 (0.01-3.0 mg/kg i.p.) alleviated the scopolamine- and dizocilpine-induced learning impairments. ANAVEX2-73 (300 µg/kg) also reversed the learning deficits in mice injected with Aβ(25-35) peptide, a non-transgenic Alzheimer's disease model. When the drug was injected simultaneously with Aβ(25-35), 7 days before the tests, it blocked the appearance of learning impairments. This protective activity was confirmed since ANAVEX2-73 blocked the Aβ(25-35)-induced oxidative stress in the hippocampus. This effect was differentially sensitive to the muscarinic receptor antagonist scopolamine or the σ(1) protein antagonist BD1047, confirming the mixed muscarinic/σ(1) pharmacological action. Finally, its unique demethyl metabolite, ANAVEX19-144, was also effective and ANAVEX2-73 presented a longer duration of action, effective 12 h before Aβ(25-35), than its related compound ANAVEX1-41. The neuroprotective activity of ANAVEX2-73, its mixed cholinergic/σ(1) activity, its low active dose range and its long duration of action together reinforce its therapeutic potential in Alzheimer's disease.