Potential of medicinal plants as neuroprotective and therapeutic properties against amyloid- β-related toxicity, and glutamate-induced excitotoxicity in human neural cells

Curr Neuropharmacol. 2021 Apr 11. doi: 10.2174/1570159X19666210412095251. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTAlzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson disease (PD) are notorious neurodegenerative diseases amongst the general population. Being age-associated diseases, the prevalence of AD and PD is forecasted to rapidly escalate with the progressive aging population of the world. These diseases are complex and multifactorial. Among the different events, amyloid β peptide (Aβ) induced toxicity is a well-established pathway of neuronal cell death which plays a vital function in AD. Glutamate, the major excitatory transmitter, acts a neurotoxin when present in excess at the synapses; this latter mechanism is termed as excitotoxicity. It is hypothesised that glutamate-induced excitotoxicity contributes to the pathogenesis of AD and PD. No cure for AD and PD is currently available and the currently approved drugs available to treat these diseases have limited effectiveness and pose adverse effects. Indeed, plants have been a major source for the discovery of novel pharmacologically active compounds for distinct pathological conditions. Diverse plant species employed for brain related disorders in the traditional medicine are being explored to determine them scientific rationale behind their uses. Herein, we present a comprehensive review of plants and their constituents have shown promise in reversing the (i) amyloid-β -related toxicity in AD models and (ii) glutamate-induced excitotoxi...
Source: Current Neuropharmacology - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: Source Type: research