Study of Daily Genistein Ingestion on Spatial Memory and Olfaction in Triple Transgenic Alzheimer's Mice

Abstract

Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by the accumulation of beta amyloid plaques and the formation of neurofibrillary tau tangles. These plaques and tangles lead to the learning and memory deficits characteristic of AD. Estrogen and estrogen‐like compounds have been shown to slow the development of plaques and tangles. Though estrogen receptors are found in the male hippocampus, it is unclear how estrogen affects learning and memory in the male hippocampus. Male triple‐transgenic (3×Tg‐AD) mice mimic the pathology and learning and memory deficits of AD in humans. To examine the potential effects on the male hippocampus, 3×Tg‐AD mice were either fed a dose of 4–5 mg/kg of genistein, a phytoestrogen found in soy or a placebo and tested behaviorally in the Morris Water Maze and Olfactory Habituation‐Dishabituation tasks. The 3×Tg‐AD mice had significantly longer swim paths to find a hidden platform as well as a lack of selective search in the platform location when the platform was removed. There was no significant difference between the 3×Tg‐AD and wild type mice during the olfactory task of habituation‐dishabituation. As the pathology of the AD develops in the 3×Tg‐AD mice, the mice will be retested to examine the differences in learning and memory. Presently, the 3×Tg‐AD were impaired in successfully learning the location of a hidden platform but were not impaired in their olfactory abilities.Support or Funding InformationRonald Troyer Research Fellowship, Drake UniversityHarris Research Endowment, Drake UniversityDrake Undergraduate Science Collaborative Institute, Drake University

Genistein in the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Preclinical Studies

“…Moran et al treated the experimental group with genistein and 17β-estradiol simultaneously; therefore, this article was excluded. No corresponding data have been reported by LeBlanc et al Pierzynowska et al displayed data by using a line chart, so that there is a large error when using software to measure the mean and standard deviation; hence, it was excluded as well . Finally, data were retrieved from the remaining five articles for meta-analysis.…”