Mulberry fruit protects dopaminergic neurons in toxin-induced Parkinson's disease models

Abstract

Parkinson's disease (PD), one of the most common neurodegenerative disorders, is characterised by the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) to the striatum (ST), and involves oxidative stress. Mulberry fruit from Morus alba L. (Moraceae) is commonly eaten, and has long been used in traditional oriental medicine. It contains well-known antioxidant agents such as anthocyanins. The present study examined the protective effects of 70 % ethanol extract of mulberry fruit (ME) against neurotoxicity in in vitro and in vivo PD models. In SH-SY5Y cells stressed with 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), ME significantly protected the cells from neurotoxicity in a dose-dependent manner. Other assays demonstrated that the protective effect of ME was mediated by its antioxidant and anti-apoptotic effects, regulating reactive oxygen species and NO generation, Bcl-2 and Bax proteins, mitochondrial membrane depolarisation and caspase-3 activation. In mesencephalic primary cells stressed with 6-OHDA or 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (MPP þ), pre-treatment with ME also protected dopamine neurons, showing a wide range of effective concentrations in MPP þ -induced toxicity. In the sub-acute mouse PD model induced by 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3, 6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP), ME showed a preventative effect against PD-like symptoms (bradykinesia) in the behavioural test and prevented MPTP-induced dopaminergic neuronal damage in an immunocytochemical analysis of the SNpc and ST. These results indicate that ME has neuroprotective effects in in vitro and in vivo PD models, and that it may be useful in preventing or treating PD.

<i>Coriandrum sativum</i> L. Protects Human Keratinocytes from Oxidative Stress by Regulating Oxidative Defense Systems

“…This effect may stem primarily from its antioxidant activities such as its repression of ROS generation and up-regulation of SOD, CAT, and GSH expression (which follow the induction of Nrf2 expression). The CSE used in this study contained 47.06 mg/g fatty acids, which were found in gas chromatography analyses to be mostly of medium chain length (C [16][17][18] ). The major fatty acids were linoleic acid and linolenic acid (accounting for 30.34 and 38.05% of fatty acids, respectively; table 1 ), which have been reported in previous studies to have antioxidative and therapeutic effects in various skin diseases [23][24][25][26] .…”

“…DCFH-DA enters cells passively and is converted into nonfluorescent DCFH, which reacts with ROS to form the fluorescent product DCF [18] . HaCaT cells were seeded on black 96-well plates or onto coverslips in 24-well plates and treated with CSE at doses of 100 and 500 g/ml for 1 h. Then, they were stimulated with 1 m M H 2 O 2 for an additional 30 min.…”

MicroRNA-128 Protects Dopamine Neurons from Apoptosis and Upregulates the Expression of Excitatory Amino Acid Transporter 4 in Parkinson’s Disease by Binding to AXIN1

“…Parkinson's disease (PD) is the most prevalent neurodegenerative disorder and occurs more frequently among the elderly; PD has become the second largest killer of the elderly [1,2]. PD is characterized by a large loss of dopamine (DA) neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) of the midbrain [3].…”

Mulberry Fruits Extract Mitigate Vascular Dementia

“…It is also used for treating weakness, fatigue, anemia and premature graying of hair. Recently, several lines of evidence have demonstrated that mulberry fruits can protect against brain damage in various conditions including Parkinson's disease (Kim et al, 2010), cerebral ischemia (Kang et al, 2006) and alcohol neurotoxicity. In addition, the memory impairment and the elevated acetyl cholinesterase induced by alcohol toxicity are also reversed.…”