Abstract
Lycium barbarum is an oriental medicinal herb that has long been used for its anti-aging and cell-protective properties. Previous studies have shown that aqueous extracts from L. barbarum exhibit neuroprotection via inhibiting pro-apoptotic signaling pathways. Other active components can also be accomplished by novel alkaline extraction method, which may give different profiles of water-soluble components. We hypothesize that another active component obtained by alkaline extraction method exerts different biological mechanisms to protect neurons. In this study, we aim to examine the neuroprotective effects from the alkaline extract of L. barbarum, namely LBB, to attenuate β-amyloid (Aβ) peptide neurotoxicity. Primary cortical neurons were exposed to Aβ-peptides inducing apoptosis and neuronal cell death. Pretreatment of LBB significantly reduced the level of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release and the activity of caspase-3 triggered by Aβ. "Wash-out" procedures did not reduce its neuroprotective effects, suggesting that LBB may not bind directly to Aβ. We have further isolated three subfractions from LBB, namely LBB-0, LBB-I and LBB-II. LBB-I and LBB-II showed differential neuroprotective effects. Western blot analysis demonstrated that LBB-I and LBB-II markedly enhanced the phosphorylation of Akt. Taken together, our results suggested that the glycoconjugate isolated from novel alkaline extraction method can open up a new avenue for drug discovery in neurodegenerative diseases.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 123-134 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Brain Research |
Volume | 1158 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 16 Jul 2007 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- β-Amyloid
- Alkaline extraction
- Lycium barbarum
- Neuroprotection
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Neuroscience
- Molecular Biology
- Developmental Biology
- Clinical Neurology