Research Progress on Natural Product Ingredients' Therapeutic Effects on Parkinson's Disease by Regulating Autophagy

Effect of spermidine on long non-coding RNAs MALAT1 in a rotenone induced-rat model of Parkinson's disease

BACKGROUND

Spermidine is a natural biologically active substance that has widespread influences on the body.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to enhance our understanding of the potential effect of spermidine on long non-coding RNA MALAT1 and explore the underlying mechanism in the rotenone-induced rat model of Parkinson's disease.

METHODS

Rats were sacrificed after locomotor behavioral testing. Striatal tissues were used to assess the expression of MALAT1, oxidative stress markers, and autophagy markers.

RESULTS

Our study found that treatment with spermidine for 2 weeks during the induction of the model significantly improved behavioral assessment, dopamine levels, and attenuated the histopathological changes that occurred in PD in comparison to the non-treated group.

CONCLUSION

Our preliminary study supports the protective effect of spermidine on the activation of autophagy and its antioxidant properties. Part of the antioxidant activity is due to the inhibition of MALAT1. However, MALAT1 does not correlate with the spermidine-induced autophagy pathway.

[The complex effect of polyphenols on the gut microbiota and triggers of neurodegeneration in Parkinson's disease]

Intestinal dysfunction and microbiome changes are actively discussed in the modern literature as the most important link in the development of neurodegenerative changes in Parkinson's disease. The article discusses the pathogenetic chain «microbiome- intestine-brain», as well as factors that affect the development of intestinal dysbiosis. A promising direction for influencing microflora and inflammatory changes in the intestine is the use of polyphenols, primarily curcumin. The review of experimental, laboratory, clinical research proving the pleiotropic effect of curcumin, including its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective effects, realized both through peripheral and central mechanisms is presented.

Perturbed autophagy intervenes systemic lupus erythematosus by active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a common multisystem, multiorgan heterozygous autoimmune disease. The main pathological features of the disease are autoantibody production and immune complex deposition. Autophagy is an important mechanism to maintain cell homeostasis. Autophagy functional abnormalities lead to the accumulation of apoptosis and induce the autoantibodies that result in immune disorders. Therefore, improving autophagy may alleviate the development of SLE. For SLE, glucocorticoids or immunosuppressive agents are commonly used in clinical treatment, but long-term use of these drugs causes serious side effects in humans. Immunosuppressive agents are expensive. Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) are widely used for immune diseases due to their low toxicity and few side effects. Many recent studies found that TCM and its active ingredients affected the pathological development of SLE by regulating autophagy. This article explains how autophagy interferes with immune system homeostasis and participates in the occurrence and development of SLE. It also summarizes several studies on TCM-regulated autophagy intervention in SLE to generate new ideas for basic research, the development of novel medications, and the clinical treatment of SLE.

Targeting Macroautophagy as a Therapeutic Opportunity to Treat Parkinson's Disease

Macroautophagy, an evolutionary conserved catabolic process in the eukaryotic cell, regulates cellular homeostasis and plays a decisive role in self-engulfing proteins, protein aggregates, dysfunctional or damaged organelles, and invading pathogens. Growing evidence from in vivo and in vitro models shows that autophagy dysfunction plays decisive role in the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD). PD is an incurable and second most common neurodegenerative disease characterised by neurological and motor dysfunction accompanied of non-motor symptoms that can also reduce the life quality of patients. Despite the investment in research, the aetiology of the disease is still unknown and the therapies available are aimed mostly at ameliorating motor symptoms. Hence, therapeutics regulating the autophagy pathway might play an important role controlling the disease progression, reducing neuronal loss and even ameliorating non-motor symptoms. In this review, we highlight potential therapeutic opportunities involved in different targeting options like an initiation of autophagy, Leucine-rich repeat kinase 2 (LRRK2) inhibition, mitophagy, lysosomes, lipid metabolism, immune system, gene expression, biomarkers, and also non-pharmacological interventions. Thus, strategies to identify therapeutics targeting the pathways modulating autophagy might hold a future for therapy development against PD.

New Promising Therapeutic Avenues of Curcumin in Brain Diseases

Curcumin, the dietary polyphenol isolated from Curcuma longa (turmeric), is commonly used as an herb and spice worldwide. Because of its bio-pharmacological effects curcumin is also called "spice of life", in fact it is recognized that curcumin possesses important proprieties such as anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, antiproliferative, anti-tumoral, and anti-aging. Neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Diseases, Parkinson's Diseases, and Multiple Sclerosis are a group of diseases characterized by a progressive loss of brain structure and function due to neuronal death; at present there is no effective treatment to cure these diseases. The protective effect of curcumin against some neurodegenerative diseases has been proven by in vivo and in vitro studies. The current review highlights the latest findings on the neuroprotective effects of curcumin, its bioavailability, its mechanism of action and its possible application for the prevention or treatment of neurodegenerative disorders.

Rational Design of Thermosensitive Hydrogel to Deliver Nanocrystals with Intranasal Administration for Brain Targeting in Parkinson's Disease

Mitochondrial dysfunction is commonly detected in individuals suffering from Parkinson's disease (PD), presenting within the form of excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation as well as energy metabolism. Overcoming this dysfunction within brain tissues is an effective approach to treat PD, while unluckily, the blood-brain barrier (BBB) substantially impedes intracerebral drug delivery. In an effort to improve the delivery of efficacious therapeutic drugs to the brain, a drug delivery platform hydrogel (MAG-NCs@Gel) was designed by complexing magnolol (MAG)-nanocrystals (MAG-NCs) into the noninvasive thermosensitive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) with self-gelation. The as-prepared MAG-NCs@Gel exhibited obvious improvements in drug solubility, the duration of residence with the nasal cavity, and the efficiency of brain targeting, respectively. Above all, continuous intranasal MAG-NCs@Gel delivery enabled MAG to cross the BBB and enter dopaminergic neurons, thereby effectively alleviating the symptoms of MPTP-induced PD. Taking advantage of the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior of this delivery platform increases its viscoelasticity in nasal cavity, thus improving the efficiency of MAG-NCs transit across the BBB. As such, MAG-NCs@Gel represented an effective delivery platform capable of normalizing ROS and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in the mitochondria of dopaminergic neurons, consequently reversing the mitochondrial dysfunction and enhancing the behavioral skills of PD mice without adversely affecting normal tissues.