Effect of Long-Term Administration of Berberine on Scopolamine-Induced Amnesia in Rats

Exploring Medicinal Herbs' Therapeutic Potential and Molecular Docking Analysis for Compounds as Potential Inhibitors of Human Acetylcholinesterase in Alzheimer's Disease Treatment

Background and Objectives: Alzheimer's disease (AD) stands as a pervasive neurodegenerative ailment of global concern, necessitating a relentless pursuit of remedies. This study aims to furnish a comprehensive exposition, delving into the intricate mechanistic actions of medicinal herbs and phytochemicals. Furthermore, we assess the potential of these compounds in inhibiting human acetylcholinesterase through molecular docking, presenting encouraging avenues for AD therapeutics. Materials and Methods: Our approach entailed a systematic exploration of phytochemicals like curcumin, gedunin, quercetin, resveratrol, nobiletin, fisetin, and berberine, targeting their capability as human acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitors, leveraging the PubChem database. Diverse bioinformatics techniques were harnessed to scrutinize molecular docking, ADMET (absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity), and adherence to Lipinski's rule of five. Results: Results notably underscored the substantial binding affinities of all ligands with specific amino acid residues within AChE. Remarkably, gedunin exhibited a superior binding affinity (-8.7 kcal/mol) compared to the reference standard. Conclusions: These outcomes accentuate the potential of these seven compounds as viable candidates for oral medication in AD treatment. Notably, both resveratrol and berberine demonstrated the capacity to traverse the blood-brain barrier (BBB), signaling their aptitude for central nervous system targeting. Consequently, these seven molecules are considered orally druggable, potentially surpassing the efficacy of the conventional drug, donepezil, in managing neurodegenerative disorders.

Berberine ameliorates rats model of combined Alzheimer's disease and type 2 diabetes mellitus via the suppression of endoplasmic reticulum stress

This study is aimed to investigate the protective effect against type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) of Berberine (BBR), and the underlying mechanism of action is explored. We established a rat model of combined AD and T2DM and used it to investigate the effect of BBR (150 mg/kg) on the course of these pathologies. The Morris water maze, biochemical analysis, hematoxylin-eosin staining, immunohistochemical study, immunofluorescent staining, TUNEL assay, RT-qPCR and western blot were used to reveal the effect of BBR on blood glucose, lipid changes, hippocampal injuries and cognitive impairment. The results showed that BBR could alleviate memory deficits, restore the disordered arrangement of nerve cells, the damage of neurons, improve TUNEL-positive cells and decrease the elevated levels of fasting blood glucose, triglyceride, total cholesterol and glycosylated serum protein levels in Alzheimer diabetic rats. Moreover, BBR treatment reduces the transcription of mRNAs and expression of proteins related to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress. These findings conclude that BBR can protect neurons by inhibiting the pathway of ER stress and thereby play an essential role in the preventive and therapeutic of AD and T2DM.

Protective role of Coptidis Rhizoma alkaloids against peroxynitrite-induced damage to renal tubular epithelial cells

A study was conducted to elucidate and compare the protective activity of alkaloids from Coptidis Rhizoma (berberine, coptisine, palmatine, epiberberine, jatrorhizine, groenlandicine and magnoflorine) using an LLC-PK1 cell under peroxynitrite (ONOO−) generation model. Treatment with 3-morpholino-sydnonimine (SIN-1) led to an increase in cellular ONOO− generation in comparison with non-treated cells. However, Coptidis Rhizoma extract and its alkaloids, except for berberine, reduced the cellular ONOO− level. In addition, DNA fragmentation induced by SIN-1 was significantly decreased by the extract, and also by coptisine, epiberberine, jatrorhizine, groenlandicine and magnoflorine. Moreover, treatment with berberine, coptisine, palmatine and epiberberine exerted a protective effect against G0/G1 phase arrest of cell cycle induced by SIN-1. The increase in cellular ONOO− generation, DNA damage and disturbance of the cell cycle by SIN-1 resulted in a decrease in cell viability. However, Coptidis Rhizoma extract, epiberberine, jatrorhizine, groenlandicine and magnoflorine significantly increased cell viability even at a concentration as low as 10μg mL−1. These findings demonstrate that Coptidis Rhizoma extract and its alkaloids can ameliorate the cell damage associated with ONOO− generation in renal tubular LLC-PK1 cells, and that the various alkaloids have distinctive mechanisms of action, such as ONOO− scavenging, protection from DNA damage and control of the cell cycle. Furthermore, the data suggest that among the Coptidis Rhizoma alkaloids, coptisine is the most effective for protection against SIN-1-induced cellular injury in terms of its potency and content.

Coptidis Rhizoma: protective effects against peroxynitrite-induced oxidative damage and elucidation of its active components

We have investigated the protective effects of Coptidis Rhizoma against peroxynitrite (ONOO(-))-induced oxidative damage and have elucidated the active components of this preparation. In an in-vitro system, Coptidis Rhizoma extract scavenged ONOO(-) and its precursors, nitric oxide (NO) and superoxide anion (O(2)(-)). This scavenging activity was more marked for ONOO(-) than its precursors. In addition, against 3-morpholinosydnonimine-induced cellular damage, this extract significantly reduced cellular ONOO(-) formation and increased cell viability. In an in-vivo lipopolysaccharide plus ischaemia-reperfusion system that generated ONOO(-), the administration of Coptidis Rhizoma extract at 50 and 100 mg kg(-1)/day for 30 days exerted greater inhibition of ONOO(-) than NO and O(2)(-). This suggested that it acted as a direct scavenger of ONOO(-) rather than as a scavenger of its precursors. Moreover, the suppression of the activities of the antioxidative enzymes superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase was significantly attenuated by the administration of Coptidis Rhizoma extract. Furthermore, the extract ameliorated renal dysfunction judged by decreasing serum urea nitrogen and creatinine levels. To elucidate the active components of Coptidis Rhizoma extract, we evaluated and compared the effects of the phenol plus alkaloid and alkaloid fractions on ONOO-induced damage. We found that the alkaloid fraction consisting of berberine, palmatine and coptisine was the most effective at protecting against ONOO(-). We confirmed that berberine (10 and 20 mg kg(-1)/day for 10 days), the main and most active alkaloid in Coptidis Rhizoma extract, was also protective, exerting NO-, O(2)(-)- and ONOO(-)-scavenging activities. This study suggested that Coptidis Rhizoma could protect against ONOO(-)-induced oxidative damage and that this effect was mainly attributable to the constituent alkaloids, especially berberine. This study is the first to demonstrate an antioxidative effect of alkaloids, including berberine, against ONOO(-)-induced damage.