Changes induced by sodium cromoglycate in brain catecholamine turnover in morphine dependent and abstinent mice

iPSC-Based Compound Screening and In Vitro Trials Identify a Synergistic Anti-amyloid β Combination for Alzheimer's Disease

In the process of drug development, in vitro studies do not always adequately predict human-specific drug responsiveness in clinical trials. Here, we applied the advantage of human iPSC-derived neurons, which offer human-specific drug responsiveness, to screen and evaluate therapeutic candidates for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Using AD patient neurons with nearly 100% purity from iPSCs, we established a robust and reproducible assay for amyloid β peptide (Aβ), a pathogenic molecule in AD, and screened a pharmaceutical compound library. We acquired 27 Aβ-lowering screen hits, prioritized hits by chemical structure-based clustering, and selected 6 leading compounds. Next, to maximize the anti-Aβ effect, we selected a synergistic combination of bromocriptine, cromolyn, and topiramate as an anti-Aβ cocktail. Finally, using neurons from familial and sporadic AD patients, we found that the cocktail showed a significant and potent anti-Aβ effect on patient cells. This human iPSC-based platform promises to be useful for AD drug development.

A Food and Drug Administration-approved asthma therapeutic agent impacts amyloid β in the brain in a transgenic model of Alzheimer disease

Interfering with the assembly of Amyloid β (Aβ) peptides from monomer to oligomeric species and fibrils or promoting their clearance from the brain are targets of anti-Aβ-directed therapies in Alzheimer disease. Here we demonstrate that cromolyn sodium (disodium cromoglycate), a Food and Drug Administration-approved drug already in use for the treatment of asthma, efficiently inhibits the aggregation of Aβ monomers into higher-order oligomers and fibrils in vitro without affecting Aβ production. In vivo, the levels of soluble Aβ are decreased by over 50% after only 1 week of daily intraperitoneally administered cromolyn sodium. Additional in vivo microdialysis studies also show that this compound decreases the half-life of soluble Aβ in the brain. These data suggest a clear effect of a peripherally administered, Food and Drug Administration-approved medication on Aβ economy, supporting further investigation of the potential long-term efficacy of cromolyn sodium in Alzheimer disease.

Central effects of cromoglycate sodium salt in rats treated with lipopolysaccharide

In 24-h water- and food-deprived rats, we have evaluated the effects of cromoglycate sodium salt, an inhibitor of the mast cell degranulation with anti-inflammatory and membrane-stabilizating activity, on the central effects induced by Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection of LPS (0.25, 0.50 and 1 mg/kg) induced a dose-dependent inhibition of water and food intake, fever, reduction in locomotor activity as well as increased anxiety levels. All these LPS effects were antagonized by a prior intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) injection of cromoglycate sodium salt (100, 150 and 200 microg/rat). Our findings suggest that peripheral LPS administration may activate brain mast cells and indicate an involvement of these cells in brain pathophysiology.