Piperine induces autophagy by enhancing protein phosphotase 2A activity in a rotenone-induced Parkinson's disease model

Comprehensive review of the phytochemistry, pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, and toxicology of alkamides (2016-2022)

Alkamides refer to a class of natural active small-molecule products composed of fatty acids and amine groups. These compounds are widely distributed in plants, and their unique structures and various pharmacological activities have caught the attention of scholars. This review provides a collection of literatures related to the phytochemistry, pharmacological effects, pharmacokinetics, and toxicity of alkamides published in 2016-2022 and their summary to provide references for further development of this class of ingredients. A total of 234 components (including chiral isomers) were summarized, pharmacological activities, such as anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antidiabetic, analgesic, neuroprotective, insecticidal, antioxidant, and antibacterial, and miscellaneous properties of alkamides were discussed. In addition, the pharmacokinetic characteristics and toxicity of alkamides were reviewed. However, information on the pharmacological mechanisms of the action, drug safety, and pharmacokinetics of alkamides is limited and thus requires further investigation and evaluation.

Research progress of plant-derived natural alkaloids in central nervous system diseases

Central nervous system (CNS) disease is one of the most important causes of human death. Because of their complex pathogenesis, more and more attention has been paid to them. At present, drug treatment of the CNS is the main means; however, most drugs only relieve symptoms, and some have certain toxicity and side effects. Natural compounds derived from plants can provide safer and more effective alternatives. Alkaloids are common nitrogenous basic organic compounds found in nature, which exist widely in many kinds of plants and have unique application value in modern medicine. For example, Galantamine and Huperzine A from medicinal plants are widely used drugs on the market to treat Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, the main purpose of this review is to provide the available information on natural alkaloids with the activity of treating central nervous system diseases in order to explore the trends and perspectives for the further study of central nervous system drugs. In this paper, 120 alkaloids with the potential effect of treating central nervous system diseases are summarized from the aspects of sources, structure types, mechanism of action and structure-activity relationship.

Promising biomarkers and therapeutic targets for the management of Parkinson's disease: recent advancements and contemporary research

Parkinson's disease (PD) is one of the progressive neurological diseases which affect around 10 million population worldwide. The clinical manifestation of motor symptoms in PD patients appears later when most dopaminergic neurons have degenerated. Thus, for better management of PD, the development of accurate biomarkers for the early prognosis of PD is imperative. The present work will discuss the potential biomarkers from various attributes covering biochemical, microRNA, and neuroimaging aspects (α-synuclein, DJ-1, UCH-L1, β-glucocerebrosidase, BDNF, etc.) for diagnosis, recent development in PD management, and major limitations with current and conventional anti-Parkinson therapy. This manuscript summarizes potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets, based on available preclinical and clinical evidence, for better management of PD.

Pathogenic Aspects and Therapeutic Avenues of Autophagy in Parkinson's Disease

The progressive aging of the population and the fact that Parkinson's disease currently does not have any curative treatment turn out to be essential issues in the following years, where research has to play a critical role in developing therapy. Understanding this neurodegenerative disorder keeps advancing, proving the discovery of new pathogenesis-related genes through genome-wide association analysis. Furthermore, the understanding of its close link with the disruption of autophagy mechanisms in the last few years permits the elaboration of new animal models mimicking, through multiple pathways, different aspects of autophagic dysregulation, with the presence of pathological hallmarks, in brain regions affected by Parkinson's disease. The synergic advances in these fields permit the elaboration of multiple therapeutic strategies for restoring autophagy activity. This review discusses the features of Parkinson's disease, the autophagy mechanisms and their involvement in pathogenesis, and the current methods to correct this cellular pathway, from the development of animal models to the potentially curative treatments in the preclinical and clinical phase studies, which are the hope for patients who do not currently have any curative treatment.

Regulation of neuronal repair and regeneration through inhibition of oligodendrocyte myelin glycoprotein (OMgp)

The inability of neural cells to regenerate themselves after an injury represents the major difference between neural cells and other cells of the body. Various factors are responsible for this, as the expression of myelin-derived inhibitors of axonal outgrowth such as neurite outgrowth inhibitor (Nogo), myelin-associated growth factor, and oligodendrocyte-myelin glycoprotein (OMgp) hinder the central nervous system (CNS) axons to recover properly and inhibit the neuron regeneration. The patient with spinal cord injury can even permanently lose their function due to the inability of axons to regenerate. However, their role in neural regeneration in vivo is not known completely. During the study, we found that once CNS gets injured, the axon growth inhibitor OMgp binds to the Nogo-66 Receptor 1 (NgR1) which in turn restricts the normal functioning of CNS. Considering the OMgp as the target protein, two flavonoid libraries (curcumin and piperine) were screened against it to get potential inhibitors. The effectiveness of the ligands was first screened by three-tier structure-based virtual screening by Glide, Schrödinger. Based on the docking score, the best-docked compounds were taken for absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion analysis and the top two complexes from each library were chosen for simulation studies. Flavonoid ligands showed a much better binding affinity when compared with already known inhibitors Riluzole and Minocycline. To date, no natural inhibitors are known for OMgp. Hence, this study can provide novel insight for upcoming research in this area. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Modulating autophagy and mitophagy as a promising therapeutic approach in neurodegenerative disorders

The high prevalence of neurodegenerative diseases has become a major public health challenge and is associated with a tremendous burden on individuals, society and federal governments worldwide. Protein misfolding and aggregation are the major pathological hallmarks of several neurodegenerative disorders. The cells have evolved several regulatory mechanisms to deal with aberrant protein folding, namely the classical ubiquitin pathway, where ubiquitination of protein aggregates marks their degradation via lysosome and the novel autophagy or mitophagy pathways. Autophagy is a catabolic process in eukaryotic cells that allows the lysosome to recycle the cell's own contents, such as organelles and proteins, known as autophagic cargo. Their most significant role is to keep cells alive in distressed situations. Mitophagy is also crucial for reducing abnormal protein aggregation and increasing organelle clearance and partly accounts for maintaining cellular homeostasis. Furthermore, substantial data indicate that any disruption in these homeostatic mechanisms leads to the emergence of several age-associated metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases. So, targeting autophagy and mitophagy might be a potential therapeutic strategy for a variety of health conditions.

Piper longum L.: A comprehensive review on traditional uses, phytochemistry, pharmacology, and health-promoting activities

Piper longum (family Piperaceae), commonly known as "long-pepper" or "Pippali" grows as a perennial shrub or as an herbaceous vine. It is native to the Indo-Malaya region and widely distributed in the tropical and subtropical world including the Indian subcontinent, Sri Lanka, Middle-East, and America. The fruits are mostly used as culinary spice and preservatives and are also a potent remedy in various traditional medicinal systems against bronchitis, cough, cold, snakebite, and scorpion-sting and are also used as a contraceptive. Various bioactive-phytochemicals including alkaloids, flavonoids, esters, and steroids were identified from the plant extracts and essential oils from the roots and fruits were reported as antimicrobial, antiparasitic, anthelminthic, mosquito-larvicidal, antiinflammatory, analgesic, antioxidant, anticancer, neuro-pharmacological, antihyperglycaemic, hepato-protective, antihyperlipidaemic, antiangiogenic, immunomodulatory, antiarthritic, antiulcer, antiasthmatic, cardioprotective, and anti-snake-venom agents. Many of its pharmacological properties were attributed to its antioxidative and antiinflammatory effects and its ability to modulate a number of signalling pathways and enzymes. This review comprehensively encompasses information on habit, distribution, ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and pharmacology of P. longum in relation to its medicinal importance and health benefits to validate the traditional claims supported by specific scientific experiments. In addition, it also discusses the safety and toxicity studies, application of green synthesis and nanotechnology as well as clinical trials performed with the plant also elucidating research gaps and future perspectives of its multifaceted uses.

Structural Studies of Piperine Inclusion Complexes in Native and Derivative β-Cyclodextrins

Piperine (PN), the primary pungent alkaloid in black pepper shows several biological activities such as antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-cancerogenic effects. Similar to other alkaloids, PN is characterized by poor water solubility. One way to improve its solubility and thus its biological activities is by forming inclusion complexes with suitable cyclodextrins. In this work PN inclusion complexes in native β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), its methylated (randomly methylated (RM-β-CD), heptakis-(2,6-di-O-methyl)-β-CD (DM-β-CD) and heptakis-(2,3,6-tri-O-methyl)-β-CD (TM-β-CD)) and 2-hydroxypropylated (HP-β-CD) derivatives are investigated using physicochemical methods, such as phase solubility study and X-ray crystallography complemented by theoretical (molecular dynamics simulations) studies. The determination of the crystal structure of the PN inclusion complexes in β-CD, DM-β-CD and TM-β-CD, reveals the formation of 1:2 guest:host inclusion complexes in the crystalline state. The guest PN molecule threads the hydrophobic cavities of the hosts which are arranged as couples in a tail-to-tail mode in the case of PN/β-CD and in a head-to-tail mode in the cases of PN/DM-β-CD and PN/TM-β-CD. MD studies based on the crystallographically determined structures and docked models show the stability of the examined complexes in an aqueous environment whereas the binding affinity of PN for the host molecules is calculated by the MM/GBSA method. Finally, phase-solubility studies of PN with β-CD, RM-β-CD and HP-β-CD are presented, indicating a B_s-type for the PN/β-CD complex and an A_L-type for the PN/RM-β-CD and PN/HP-β-CD complexes with 1:1 guest:host stoichiometry.

The disturbance of protein synthesis/degradation homeostasis is a common trait of age-related neurodegenerative disorders

Protein homeostasis or "proteostasis" represent the process that regulates the balance of the intracellular functional and "healthy" proteins. Proteostasis is fundamental to preserve physiological metabolic processes in the cell and it allow to respond to any given stimulus as the expression of components of the proteostasis network is customized according to the proteomic demands of different cellular environments. In conditions that promote unfolding/misfolding of proteins chaperones act as signaling molecules inducing extreme measures to either fix the problem or destroy unfolded proteins. When the chaperone machinery fails under pathological insults unfolded proteins induce the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress activating the unfolded protein response (UPR) machinery. The activation of the UPR restores ER proteostasis primarily through the transcriptional remodeling of ER protein folding, trafficking, and degradation pathways, such as the ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS). If these mechanisms do not manage to clear the aberrant proteins, proteasome overload and become defective, and misfolded proteins may form aggregates thus extending the UPR mechanism. These aggregates are then attempted to be cleared by macroautophagy. Impaired proteostasis promote the accumulation of misfolded proteins that exacerbate the damage to chaperones, surveillance systems and/or degradative activities. Remarkably, the removal of toxic misfolded proteins is critical for all cells, but it is especially significant in neurons since these cannot be readily replaced. In neurons, the maintenance of efficient proteostasis is essential to healthy aging since the dysregulation of the proteostasis network can lead to neurodegenerative disease. Each of these brain pathologies is characterized by the repeated misfolding of one of more peculiar proteins, which evade both the protein folding machinery and cellular degradation mechanisms and begins to form aggregates that nucleate out into large fibrillar aggregates. In this chapter we describe the mechanisms, associated with faulty proteostasis, that promote the formation of protein aggregates, amyloid fibrils, intracellular, and extracellular inclusions in the most common nondegenerative disorders also referred to as protein misfolding disorders.

Emerging Therapeutic Strategies for Parkinson’s Disease and Future Prospects: A 2021 Update

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a neurodegenerative disorder pathologically distinguished by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. Muscle rigidity, tremor, and bradykinesia are all clinical motor hallmarks of PD. Several pathways have been implicated in PD etiology, including mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired protein clearance, and neuroinflammation, but how these factors interact remains incompletely understood. Although many breakthroughs in PD therapy have been accomplished, there is currently no cure for PD, only trials to alleviate the related motor symptoms. To reduce or stop the clinical progression and mobility impairment, a disease-modifying approach that can directly target the etiology rather than offering symptomatic alleviation remains a major unmet clinical need in the management of PD. In this review, we briefly introduce current treatments and pathophysiology of PD. In addition, we address the novel innovative therapeutic targets for PD therapy, including α-synuclein, autophagy, neurodegeneration, neuroinflammation, and others. Several immunomodulatory approaches and stem cell research currently in clinical trials with PD patients are also discussed. Moreover, preclinical studies and clinical trials evaluating the efficacy of novel and repurposed therapeutic agents and their pragmatic applications with encouraging outcomes are summarized. Finally, molecular biomarkers under active investigation are presented as potentially valuable tools for early PD diagnosis.

Black Pepper or Radish Seed Oils in a New Combination of Essential Oils Modulated Broiler Chickens’ Performance and Expression of Digestive Enzymes, Lipogenesis, Immunity, and Autophagy-Related Genes

Optimal combinations of essential oils (EOs) can enhance performance and maintain poultry productivity. The effects of EOs with black pepper oil (BPO) or radish seed oil (RSO) on performance and the expression of digestive enzymes, lipogenesis, immunity, and autophagy-related genes in broiler chickens were explored. Six dietary treatments for 300 one-day-old chicks were allocated as follows: controls were fed a basal diet, one group was fed an EO-supplemented diet (1.5 g/kg diet of parsley, mint, and carrot seed oils (1:1:1)), and other groups received Eos + BPO0.25, Eos + BPO0.5, Eos + RSO0.25, and Eos + RSO0.5 treatments, with a basal diet containing EOs plus BPO or RSO at the level of 0.25 or 0.5 g/kg, respectively. Supplementation with 0.5 g/kg of EOs plus BPO or RSO resulted in the most improved maximum BWG and FCR in broiler chickens. The lactobacilli population was increased in Eos + BPO0.5, followed by EOs + RSO0.5, unlike in the control. The highest expression of the CCK and PNLIP genes was identified in the Eos + BPO group. The FAS and ACC genes were upregulated, while the IgA and IL-10 genes were downregulated, with EOs plus RSO or BPO. The group that received Eos + BPO0.5, followed by Eos + RSO0.5, displayed patterns of higher expression for atg5, atg7, and atg12, with lower expression of mTOR. In summary, a new combination of EOs with 0.5 g/kg BPO had potential growth-promoting and immune-boosting effects in broiler chickens.

Piperine and Its Metabolite’s Pharmacology in Neurodegenerative and Neurological Diseases

Piperine (PIP) is an active alkaloid of black and long peppers. An increasing amount of evidence is suggesting that PIP and its metabolite’s could be a potential therapeutic to intervene different disease conditions including chronic inflammation, cardiac and hepatic diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. In addition, the omnipresence of PIP in food and beverages made this compound an important investigational material. It has now become essential to understand PIP pharmacology and toxicology to determine its merits and demerits, especially its effect on the central nervous system (CNS). Although several earlier reports documented that PIP has poor pharmacokinetic properties, such as absorption, bioavailability, and blood–brain barrier permeability. However, its interaction with metabolic enzyme cytochrome P450 superfamily and competitive hydrophobic interaction at Monoamine oxide B (MAO-B) active site have made PIP both a xenobiotics bioenhancer and a potential MAO-B inhibitor. Moreover, recent advancements in pharmaceutical technology have overcome several of PIP’s limitations, including bioavailability and blood–brain barrier permeability, even at low doses. Contrarily, the structure activity relationship (SAR) study of PIP suggesting that its several metabolites are reactive and plausibly responsible for acute toxicity or have pharmacological potentiality. Considering the importance of PIP and its metabolites as an emerging drug target, this study aims to combine the current knowledge of PIP pharmacology and biochemistry with neurodegenerative and neurological disease therapy.

Therapeutic spectrum of piperine for clinical practice: a scoping review

Translation of traditional knowledge of herbs into a viable product for clinical use is still an uphill task. Piperine, a pungent alkaloid molecule derived from Piper nigrum and Piper longum possesses diverse pharmacological effects. Traditionally, pepper is used for arthritis, bronchitis, gastritis, diarrhea, snake bite, menstrual pain, fever, and bacterial infections, etc. The anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and immunomodulatory actions of piperine are the possible mechanisms behind its therapeutic potential. Various in-silico and experimental studies have shown piperine as a possible promising molecule in coronavirus disease (COVID-19), ebola, and dengue due to its immunomodulatory and antiviral activities. The other important clinical applications of piperine are due to its bio enhancing effect on drugs, by modulating, absorption in the gastrointestinal tract, altering activities of transporters like p-glycoprotein substrates, and modulating drug metabolism by altering the expression of cytochrome P450 or UDP-glucuronosyltransferase enzymes. Piperine attracted clinicians in treating patients with arthritis, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, skin infections, gastric and liver disorders. This review focused on systematic, evidence-based insight into the use of piperine in clinical settings and mechanistic details behind its therapeutic actions. Also, highlights a number of clinical trials of piperine at various stages exploring its clinical application in cancer, neurological, respiratory, and viral disease, etc.

Neuroprotective Effects of Black Pepper and Its Bioactive Compounds in Age-Related Neurological Disorders

Age-related neurological disorders (ANDs), including neurodegenerative diseases, are multifactorial disorders whose risk increases with age. The main pathological hallmarks of ANDs include behavioral changes, excessive oxidative stress, progressive functional declines, impaired mitochondrial function, protein misfolding, neuroinflammation, and neuronal cell death. Recently, efforts have been made to overcome ANDs because of their increased age-dependent prevalence. Black pepper, the fruit of Piper nigrum L. in the family Piperaceae, is an important food spice that has long been used in traditional medicine to treat various human diseases. Consumption of black pepper and black pepper-enriched products is associated with numerous health benefits due to its antioxidant, antidiabetic, anti-obesity, antihypertensive, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, hepatoprotective, and neuroprotective properties. This review shows that black pepper's major bioactive neuroprotective compounds, such as piperine, effectively prevent AND symptoms and pathological conditions by modulating cell survival signaling and death. Relevant molecular mechanisms are also discussed. In addition, we highlight how recently developed novel nanodelivery systems are vital for improving the efficacy, solubility, bioavailability, and neuroprotective properties of black pepper (and thus piperine) in different experimental AND models, including clinical trials. This extensive review shows that black pepper and its active ingredients have therapeutic potential for ANDs.

The potential role of Piper guineense (black pepper) in managing geriatric brain aging: a review

Brain aging is one of the unavoidable aspects of geriatric life. As one ages, changes such as the shrinking of certain parts (particularly the frontal cortex, which is vital to learning and other complex mental activities) of the brain may occur. Consequently, communications between neurons are less effective, and blood flow to the brain could also decrease. Efforts made at the biological level for repair become inadequate, leading to the accumulation of β-amyloid peptide in the brain faster than its probable degradation mechanism, resulting in cognitive malfunction. Subsequent clinical usage of drugs in battling related brain-aging ailments has been associated with several undesirable side effects. However, recent research has investigated the potential use of natural compounds from food in combating such occurrences. This review provides information about the use of Piper guineense (black pepper) as a possible agent in managing brain aging because of its implications for practical brain function. P. guineense contains an alkaloid (piperine) reported to be an antioxidant, anti-depressant, and central nervous system stimulant. This alkaloid and other related compounds are neuroprotective agents that reduce lipid oxidation and inhibit tangles in the brain tissues.

Piperine promotes autophagy flux by P2RX4 activation in SNCA/α-synuclein-induced Parkinson disease model

Olfactory dysfunction, one of the earliest non-motor symptoms of Parkinson disease (PD), is accompanied by abnormal deposition of SNCA/α-synuclein in the olfactory bulb (OB). The macroautophagy/autophagy-lysosome pathway (ALP) plays an important role in degrading pathological SNCA and modulating this pathway may be a promising treatment strategy. P2RX4 (purinergic receptor P2X, ligand-gated ion channel 4), a member of the purinergic receptor X family, is a key molecule regulating ALP. Piperine (PIP) is a Chinese medicine with anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant effects. The present study investigated the neuroprotective effects of PIP on SNCA overexpression-induced PD cell and mouse models. We found that PIP oral administration (25, 50 and 100 mg/kg) for 6 weeks attenuated olfactory deficits and delayed motor deficits in Thy 1-SNCA transgenic mice overexpressing human SNCA. This was accompanied by a degradation of pathological SNCA in OB. In addition, PIP improved cell viability and promoted degradation of human SNCA in SK-N-SH cells. These protective effects were exerted via autophagy flux promotion by enhancing autophagosome-lysosome membrane fusion. Furthermore, tandem mass tag proteomics analyses showed that P2RX4 plays an important role in PIP treatment-induced activation of autophagy flux. These findings demonstrate that PIP exerts neuroprotective effects in PD models via promotion of autophagy flux and may be an effective agent for PD treatment.

Abbreviations: 6-OHDA, 6-hydroxydopamine; ALP, autophagy-lysosome pathway; BafA₁, bafilomycin A₁; CoQ10, coenzyme Q10; DMSO: dimethyl sulfoxide; HPLC, high-performance liquid chromatography; IVE, ivermectin; LDH, lactate dehydrogenase; MAP1LC3/LC3-II, lipid-conjugated microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3; MPTP, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine; mRFP-GFP, tandem monomeric red fluorescent protein-green fluorescent protein; MTT, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; OB, olfactory bulb; P2RX4, purinergic receptor P2X, ligand-gated ion channel 4; PD, Parkinson disease; PBS: phosphate-buffered saline; PI: propidium iodide; PIP, piperine; PLG, piperlongumine; p-SNCA, SNCA phosphorylated at Ser129; Rap, rapamycin; RT-PCR: quantitative real-time PCR; SNARE, soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor-attachment protein receptor; SNCA/α-synuclein, synuclein, alpha; STX17, syntaxin17; TG, transgenic; TH, tyrosine hydroxylase; UPS, ubiquitin-proteasome system; WT, wild-type

Harnessing the mitochondrial integrity for neuroprotection: Therapeutic role of piperine against experimental ischemic stroke

Ischemic stroke (IS) is a rapidly increasing global burden and is associated with severe neurological decline and mortality. There is urgent requirement of the efforts, aimed to identify therapeutic strategies that are effective in clinic to promote significant recovery from IS. Studies have shown that mitochondria mediated neuroprotection can be a competent target against ischemic damage. Therefore, we examined whether mitochondrial impairment is regulated by Piperine (PIP), an alkaloid of Piper Longum, which has neuroprotective activity against ischemic brain injury. In this study, transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO) surgery was performed on male Wistar rats for 90 min followed by 22.5 h of reperfusion for mimicking the IS condition. This study consisted of three groups: sham, tMCAO and tMCAO + PIP (10 mg/kg b.wt., p.o/day for 15 days), and studied for behavioral tests, infarct volume, brain pathological changes, mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation alongwith cell survival status. PIP pre-treatment showed reduction in neurological alterations and infarct volume. In addition, PIP pre-treatment suppressed the mitochondrial dysfunction and might have anti-apoptotic potential by preventing Cytochrome c (Cyt c) release from mitochondria to cytoplasm and caspase 3 activation. It also regulates pro-apoptotic, Bax and anti-apoptotic, Bcl-2 proteins accompanied by glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) positive cells in cortex region. Quantitative Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) results also showed that PIP reduced the expression of pro-inflammatory protein, interleukin-1 β (IL-1β) and enhanced cell survival by restoring the activity of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and its transcription protein, cAMP response element binding protein (CREB). Taken together, PIP reduced the mitochondrial dysfunction, neurological impairment, and enhanced neuronal survival. In conclusion, our findings reinforce PIP as an effective neuroprotective agent and provide important evidence about its role as a potential target to serve as a promising therapy for treatment of IS.

Exploring the Role of Autophagy Dysfunction in Neurodegenerative Disorders

Autophagy is a catabolic pathway by which misfolded proteins or damaged organelles are engulfed by autophagosomes and then transported to lysosomes for degradation. Recently, a great improvement has been done to explain the molecular mechanisms and roles of autophagy in several important cellular metabolic processes. Besides being a vital clearance pathway or a cell survival pathway in response to different stresses, autophagy dysfunction, either upregulated or down-regulated, has been suggested to be linked with numerous neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Impairment at different stages of autophagy results in the formation of large protein aggregates and damaged organelles, which leads to the onset and progression of different neurodegenerative disorders. This article elucidates the recent progress about the role of autophagy in neurodegenerative disorders and explains how autophagy dysfunction is linked with the pathogenesis of such disorders as well as the novel potential autophagy-associated therapies for treating them.

The piperine derivative HJ105 inhibits Aβ1-42-induced neuroinflammation and oxidative damage via the Keap1-Nrf2-TXNIP axis

BACKGROUND

Piperine is a great lead compound, as a phytopharmaceutical with reported neuroprotective effects in neurodegenerative diseases. HJ105, a piperine derivative with high affinity to Keap1 receptor, attracts increasing attention in Alzheimer's disease (AD) treatment.

PURPOSE

This work mainly aimed to study HJ105's therapeutic effects on Aβ_1-42-associated AD and the underpinning mechanisms.

METHODS

In the in vivo part, a rat model of AD was established by bilateral intra-hippocampal administration of aggregated Aβ_1-42, followed by a month of intragastric HJ105 or donepezil administration. Spatial and learning memories were detected by the Morris water maze assay, passive avoidance learning as well as Y-maze test. The morphology of hippocampal neurons was assessed by hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining. In addition, the amounts of the IL-1β and TNF-α were obtained with specific ELISA kits. More importantly, apoptosis-related proteins and factors involved in Nrf2/TXNIP/NLPR3 pathways were detected by Western blot, while the interaction between Keap1 and Nrf2 was assessed by co-immunoprecipitation. In the in vitro part, human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells were applied to evaluate the role of HJ105 on Aβ_1-42-induced neuronal damage.

RESULTS

Treatment of HJ105 not only reversed memory impairment, but also protected neurons in the hippocampus by inhibiting Bax/Bcl2 ratio increase. HJ105 decreased TXNIP expression, suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the hippocampus, which in turn counteracted the upregulation of IL-1β and TNF-α. Notably, HJ105 exerted an inhibitory effect on Keap1-Nrf2 interaction and upregulated nuclear Nrf2, which conversely increased the expression levels of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase and downregulated malondialdehyde. Additionally, neurotoxicity induced by Aβ_1-42 in SH-SY5Y cells was alleviated by HJ105.

CONCLUSION

Overall, HJ105 exerts neuroprotective effects in SH-SY5Y cells induced by Aβ_1-42 as well as in experimental rats with AD by decreasing apoptosis, oxidative stress and neuroinflammation, partly via suppression of Keap1-Nrf2 complex generation. HJ105 might represent a promising compound for AD treatment.

Piperine: Chemical, biological and nanotechnological applications

Piperine (PIP) is an alkaloid present in several species of piper, mainly Piper nigrum Linn. and P. longum, among other species. The present article provides a comprehensive review of PIP research in the last years concerning its chemical properties, synthesis, absorption, metabolism, bioavailability and toxicity. The reviewed PIP literature has shown many pharmacological properties, such as antidiabetic, antidiarrheal, antioxidant, antibacterial, and anti-parasitic activity of PIP. However, its low solubility and absorption make its application challenging. This review also includes advances in the development of nanosystems containing PIP, including liposomes, micelles, metal nanoparticles, nanofibers, polymeric nanoparticles, and solid-lipid nanoparticles. Finally, we discuss different in vitro and in vivo studies to evaluate the biological activity of this drug, as well as some methods for the synthesis of nanosystems and their physical characteristics.

Momordica Charantia Polysaccharides Attenuates MPP+-Induced Injury in Parkinson’s Disease Mice and Cell Models by Regulating TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB Pathway

Objective. To investigate the potential role of Momordica charantia polysaccharides (MCPs) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) and reveal the molecular mechanism of its function. Method. 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) and 1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium (1-methyl-4-phenylpyridinium, MPP+) were used to establish PD mice and cell models. The mice and cells were divided into 4 groups: Control group, Control+MCPs group, PD group, and PD+MCPs group. Pole climbing experiment and Rotarod experiment were used to observe the coordination ability of mice. High-performance liquid chromatography and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) were used to determine neurotransmitters and metabolites, inflammatory factors TNF-α and IL-1β, oxidative stress-related markers SOD, MDA, and GSH in striatum tissues. Western blot was used to determine the protein levels of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), oxidative stress-related protein Cytochrome C (Cytochrome C), and apoptosis-related proteins Bcl-2, Bax, and cleaved Caspase-3 in tissues and cells. Moreover, flow cytometry, PI staining, and fluorescence were used to observe cell apoptosis. Finally, the activation effect of MCPs on TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB signaling pathway was observed and verified. Results. Compared with the Control group, MPTP treatment can induce brain damage in mice (all $P<0.05$ ), change the metabolic state of neurotransmitters (all $P<0.05$ ), induce inflammation (all $P<0.05$ ), and induce apoptosis and the occurrence of oxidation reaction (all $P<0.05$ ); however, MCPs treatment can significantly reverse the above changes (all $P<0.05$ ). In cell models, studies have found that MCPs can play a protective role by regulating the activation state of TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway. Conclusion. This study found that the application of MCPs therapy can play anti-inflammatory, antioxidative stress, and antiapoptotic effects in PD by regulating the activation of the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway.

Using Rotenone to Model Parkinson's Disease in Mice: A Review of the Role of Pharmacokinetics

Rotenone is a naturally occurring toxin that inhibits complex I of the mitochondrial electron transport chain. Several epidemiological studies have shown an increased risk of Parkinson's disease (PD) in individuals exposed chronically to rotenone, and it has received great attention for its ability to reproduce many critical features of PD in animal models. Laboratory studies of rotenone have repeatedly shown that it induces in vivo substantia nigra dopaminergic cell loss, a hallmark of PD neuropathology. Additionally, rotenone induces in vivo aggregation of α-synuclein, the major component of Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites found in the brain of PD patients and another hallmark of PD neuropathology. Some in vivo rotenone models also reproduce peripheral signs of PD, such as reduced intestinal motility and peripheral α-synuclein aggregation, both of which are thought to precede classical signs of PD in humans, such as cogwheel rigidity, bradykinesia, and resting tremor. Nevertheless, variability has been noted in cohorts of animals exposed to the same rotenone exposure regimen and also between cohorts exposed to similar doses of rotenone. Low doses, administered chronically, may reproduce PD symptoms and neuropathology more faithfully than excessively high doses, but overlap between toxicity and parkinsonian motor phenotypes makes it difficult to separate if behavior is examined in isolation. Rotenone degrades when exposed to light or water, and choice of vehicle may affect outcome. Rotenone is metabolized extensively in vivo, and choice of route of exposure influences greatly the dose used. However, male rodents may be capable of greater metabolism of rotenone, which could therefore reduce their total body exposure when compared with female rodents. The pharmacokinetics of rotenone has been studied extensively, over many decades. Here, we review these pharmacokinetics and models of PD using this important piscicide.

Fine-Tuning the Biological Profile of Multitarget Mitochondriotropic Antioxidants for Neurodegenerative Diseases

Neurotransmitter depletion and mitochondrial dysfunction are among the multiple pathological events that lead to neurodegeneration. Following our previous studies related with the development of multitarget mitochondriotropic antioxidants, this study aims to evaluate whether the π-system extension on the chemical scaffolds of AntiOXCIN2 and AntiOXCIN3 affects their bioactivity and safety profiles. After the synthesis of four triphenylphosphonium (TPP⁺) conjugates (compounds 2–5), we evaluated their antioxidant properties and their effect on neurotransmitter-metabolizing enzymes. All compounds were potent equine butyrylcholinesterase (eqBChE) and moderate electric eel acetylcholinesterase (eeAChE) inhibitors, with catechols 4 and 5 presenting lower IC₅₀ values than AntiOXCIN2 and AntiOXCIN3, respectively. However, differences in the inhibition potency and selectivity of compounds 2–5 towards non-human and human cholinesterases (ChEs) were observed. Co-crystallization studies with compounds 2–5 in complex with human ChEs (hChEs) showed that these compounds exhibit different binging modes to hAChE and hBChE. Unlike AntiOXCINs, compounds 2–5 displayed moderate human monoamine oxidase (hMAO) inhibitory activity. Moreover, compounds 4 and 5 presented higher ORAC-FL indexes and lower oxidation potential values than the corresponding AntiOXCINs. Catechols 4 and 5 exhibited broader safety windows in differentiated neuroblastoma cells than benzodioxole derivatives 2 and 3. Compound 4 is highlighted as a safe mitochondria-targeted antioxidant with dual ChE/MAO inhibitory activity. Overall, this work is a contribution for the development of dual therapeutic agents addressing both mitochondrial oxidative stress and neurotransmitter depletion.

The functional effects of piperine and piperine plus donepezil on hippocampal synaptic plasticity impairment in rat model of Alzheimer's disease

AIMS

The modulatory effects of piperine on drug metabolizing enzymes play an important role in the control of pharmacokinetic and the bioavailability properties of the administered drugs. The present study investigated the effect of piperine and piperine-donepezil co-administration on cognitive functions and synaptic plasticity at hippocampal perforant pathway (PP) to dentate gyrus (DG) synapses in an experimental model of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Intracerebroventricularly (ICV) streptozotocin (STZ) injected rats were treated once daily with piperine, donepezil and piperine combined with donepezil for 4 weeks. Cognitive performance was evaluated using passive avoidance and Morris water maze performance tasks. Analysis of evoked field potentials was done to explore possible effects on input/output response, paired-pulse facilitation and long-term synaptic plasticity (LTP) at PP to DG synapses of hippocampus.

KEY FINDINGS

Rats subjected to ICV injection of STZ exhibited cognitive deficit associated with a hippocampal oxidative stress, effects that were reversed by chronic treatment with piperine or donepezil and or piperine combined with donepezil. Chronic treatment with piperine or donepezil restored the disruptive effects of STZ on LTP without altering basal synaptic transmission.

SIGNIFICANCE

We found that optimal hippocampal function is dependent on tissue redox homeostasis. Piperine might reduce the synaptotoxic effects of STZ on hippocampal synaptic neurotransmission and correspondently is a good potential for neuroprotection against oxidative damage from ICV injection of STZ. These results suggest that piperine or donepezil significantly ameliorate cognitive deficit and LTP induction by attenuating oxidative status.

Traditional Chinese medicine compounds regulate autophagy for treating neurodegenerative disease: A mechanism review

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) are common chronic diseases related to progressive damage of the nervous system. Globally, the number of people with an ND is dramatically increasing consistent with the fast aging of society and one of the common features of NDs is the abnormal aggregation of diverse proteins. Autophagy is the main process by which misfolded proteins and damaged organelles are removed from cells. It has been found that the impairment of autophagy is associated with many NDs, suggesting that autophagy has a vital role in the neurodegeneration process. Recently, more and more studies have reported that autophagy inducers display a protective role in different ND experimental models, suggesting that enhancement of autophagy could be a potential therapy for NDs. In this review, the evidence for beneficial effects of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) regulate autophagy in the models of Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and other NDs are presented and common autophagy-related mechanisms are identified. The results demonstrate that TCM which regulate autophagy are potential therapeutic candidates for ND treatment.

Neuroprotection: Targeting Multiple Pathways by Naturally Occurring Phytochemicals

With the increase in the expectancy of the life span of humans, neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) have imposed a considerable burden on the family, society, and nation. In defiance of the breakthroughs in the knowledge of the pathogenesis and underlying mechanisms of various NDs, very little success has been achieved in developing effective therapies. This review draws a bead on the availability of the nutraceuticals to date for various NDs (Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Huntington's disease, vascular cognitive impairment, Prion disease, Spinocerebellar ataxia, Spinal muscular atrophy, Frontotemporal dementia, and Pick's disease) focusing on their various mechanisms of action in various in vivo and in vitro models of NDs. This review is distinctive in its compilation to critically review preclinical and clinical studies of the maximum phytochemicals in amelioration and prevention of almost all kinds of neurodegenerative diseases and address their possible mechanism of action. PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library searches were used for preclinical studies, while ClinicalTrials.gov and PubMed were searched for clinical updates. The results from preclinical studies demonstrate the efficacious effects of the phytochemicals in various NDs while clinical reports showing mixed results with promise for phytochemical use as an adjunct to the conventional treatment in various NDs. These studies together suggest that phytochemicals can significantly act upon different mechanisms of disease such as oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptotic pathways, and gene regulation. However, further clinical studies are needed that should include the appropriate biomarkers of NDs and the effect of phytochemicals on them as well as targeting the appropriate population.

The impact of proteostasis dysfunction secondary to environmental and genetic causes on neurodegenerative diseases progression and potential therapeutic intervention

Aggregation of particular proteins in the form of inclusion bodies or plaques followed by neuronal death is a hallmark of neurodegenerative proteopathies such as primary Parkinsonism, Alzheimer's disease, Lou Gehrig's disease, and Huntington's chorea. Complex polygenic and environmental factors implicated in these proteopathies. Accumulation of proteins in these disorders indicates a substantial disruption in protein homeostasis (proteostasis). Proteostasis or cellular proteome homeostasis is attained by the synchronization of a group of cellular mechanisms called the proteostasis network (PN), which is responsible for the stability of the proteome and achieves the equilibrium between synthesis, folding, and degradation of proteins. In this review, we will discuss the different types of PN and the impact of PN component dysfunction on the four major neurodegenerative diseases mentioned earlier. Graphical abstract.

Wnt/β‑catenin signaling modulates piperine‑mediated antitumor effects on human osteosarcoma cells

The plant extract piperine is used as a traditional Chinese medicine due to its anti-inflammatory effects and efficacy against numerous types of cancer. The aim of the present study was to investigate the antitumor mechanism of piperine in human osteosarcoma U2OS and 143B cell lines. The effects of piperine on cell apoptosis and invasion of human osteosarcoma cells were assessed using flow cytometry and Transwell assays. Moreover, western blotting was used to measure the effects of piperine on the protein expression levels of the metastasis markers matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). In addition, the involvement of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway in modulating the effects of piperine was examined via western blot analysis. The results of MTT and Transwell invasion assays indicated that piperine treatment dose-dependently reduced U2OS and 143B cell viability and invasion. Furthermore, a significant reduction was identified in MMP-2, VEGF, glycogen synthase kinase-3β and β-catenin protein expression levels, as well as the expression levels of their target proteins cyclooxygenase-2, cyclin D1 and c-myc, in U2OS cells after piperine treatment. In addition, similar results were observed in 143B cells. Therefore, the present study demonstrated the efficacy of piperine in osteosarcoma, and identified that the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway may modulate the antitumor effects of piperine on human U2OS and 143B cells.

NLRP10 ablation protects against ischemia/reperfusion-associated brain injury by suppression of neuroinflammation

Ischemic stroke leads to neuronal cell death and induces a cascade of inflammatory signals that results in secondary brain damage. Although constant efforts to develop therapeutic strategies and to reveal the molecular mechanism resulting in the physiopathology of this disease, much still remains unclear. Membrane-bound Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and cytosolic nucleotide binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptors (NLRs) are two major families of pattern recognition receptors that initiate pro-inflammatory signaling pathways. In the present study, we explored the role of NLRP10 in regulating inflammatory responses in acute ischemic stroke using the wild type (WT) and NLRP10 knockout (KO) mice by inducing middle cerebral artery occlusion/reperfusion (MCAO) injuries. The study first showed that NLRP10 was over-expressed in the ischemic penumbra of WT mice. Then, the brain infarct volume was significantly decreased, and the moving activity was improved post-MCAO in mice with NLRP10 knockout. Apoptosis was also alleviated by NLRP10-knockout, as evidenced by the decreased number of TUNEL-staining cells. Further, NLRP10 deficiency attenuated the activation of glia cells in hippocampus of mice with MCAO operation. NLRP10 inhibition ameliorated the levels of inflammatory factors in peripheral blood serum and hippocampus of mice after stroke. The activation of toll-like receptor (TLR)-4/nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathways was markedly suppressed by NLRP10 ablation in mice after MCAO treatment. Importantly, inflammasome, including NLRP12, ASC and Caspase-1, induced by MCAO in hippocampus of mice was clearly impeded by the loss of NLRP10. The results above were mainly verified in LPS-incubated astrocytes in the absence of NLRP10. Correspondingly, in LPS-treated astrocytes, NLRP10 knockout-reduced inflammation via impairing TLR-4/NF-κB and NLRP12/ASC/Caspase-1 pathways was evidently restored by over-expressing NLRP10. Therefore, the results above indicated an essential role of NLRP10 in regulating ischemic stroke, presenting NLRP10 as a promising target to protect human against stroke.

Piperine-A Major Principle of Black Pepper: A Review of Its Bioactivity and Studies

Piperine is the main compound present in black pepper, and is the carrier of its specific pungent taste, which is responsible for centuries of human dietary utilization and worldwide popularity as a food ingredient. Along with the application as a food ingredient and food preservative, it is used in traditional medicine for many purposes, which has in most cases been justified by modern scientific studies on its biological effects. It has been confirmed that piperine has many bioactive effects, such as antimicrobial action, as well as many physiological effects that can contribute to general human health, including immunomodulatory, hepatoprotective, antioxidant, antimetastatic, antitumor, and many other activities. Clinical studies demonstrated remarkable antioxidant, antitumor, and drug availability-enhancing characteristics of this compound, together with immunomodulatory potential. All these facts point to the therapeutic potential of piperine and the need to incorporate this compound into general health-enhancing medical formulations, as well as into those that would be used as adjunctive therapy in order to enhance the bioavailability of various (chemo)therapeutic drugs.

Progress of immunotherapy of anti-α-synuclein in Parkinson's disease

Many neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by progressive loss of neurons and abnormal protein accumulation, including amyloid (A)β and tau in Alzheimer's disease and Lewy bodies and α-synuclein (α-syn) in Parkinson's disease (PD). Recent evidence suggests that adaptive immunity plays an important role in PD, and that anti-α-syn antibodies can be used as therapy in neurodegenerative diseases; monoclonal antibodies were shown to inhibit α-syn propagation and aggregation in PD models and patients. In this review, we summarize the different pathological states of α-syn, including gene mutations, truncation, phosphorylation, and the high molecular weight form, and describe the specific antibodies that recognize the α-syn monomer or oligomer, some of which have been tested in clinic trials. We also discuss future research directions and potential targets in PD therapy.

Recent progress in the role of autophagy in neurological diseases

Autophagy (here refers to macroautophagy) is a catabolic pathway by which large protein aggregates and damaged organelles are first sequestered into a double-membraned structure called autophago-some and then delivered to lysosome for destruction. Recently, tremen-dous progress has been made to elucidate the molecular mechanism and functions of this essential cellular metabolic process. In addition to being either a rubbish clearing system or a cellular surviving program in response to different stresses, autophagy plays important roles in a large number of pathophysiological conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, and especially neurodegenerative disorders. Here we review recent progress in the role of autophagy in neurological diseases and discuss how dysregulation of autophagy initiation, autophagosome formation, maturation, and/or au-tophagosome-lysosomal fusion step contributes to the pathogenesis of these disorders in the nervous system.

Piper Species: A Comprehensive Review on Their Phytochemistry, Biological Activities and Applications

Piper species are aromatic plants used as spices in the kitchen, but their secondary metabolites have also shown biological effects on human health. These plants are rich in essential oils, which can be found in their fruits, seeds, leaves, branches, roots and stems. Some Piper species have simple chemical profiles, while others, such as Piper nigrum, Piper betle, and Piper auritum, contain very diverse suites of secondary metabolites. In traditional medicine, Piper species have been used worldwide to treat several diseases such as urological problems, skin, liver and stomach ailments, for wound healing, and as antipyretic and anti-inflammatory agents. In addition, Piper species could be used as natural antioxidants and antimicrobial agents in food preservation. The phytochemicals and essential oils of Piper species have shown strong antioxidant activity, in comparison with synthetic antioxidants, and demonstrated antibacterial and antifungal activities against human pathogens. Moreover, Piper species possess therapeutic and preventive potential against several chronic disorders. Among the functional properties of Piper plants/extracts/active components the antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, and neuropharmacological activities of the extracts and extract-derived bioactive constituents are thought to be key effects for the protection against chronic conditions, based on preclinical in vitro and in vivo studies, besides clinical studies. Habitats and cultivation of Piper species are also covered in this review. In this current work, available literature of chemical constituents of the essential oils Piper plants, their use in traditional medicine, their applications as a food preservative, their antiparasitic activities and other important biological activities are reviewed.

Balancing mTOR Signaling and Autophagy in the Treatment of Parkinson's Disease

The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway plays a critical role in regulating cell growth, proliferation, and life span. mTOR signaling is a central regulator of autophagy by modulating multiple aspects of the autophagy process, such as initiation, process, and termination through controlling the activity of the unc51-like kinase 1 (ULK1) complex and vacuolar protein sorting 34 (VPS34) complex, and the intracellular distribution of TFEB/TFE3 and proto-lysosome tubule reformation. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a serious, common neurodegenerative disease characterized by dopaminergic neuron loss in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) and the accumulation of Lewy bodies. An increasing amount of evidence indicates that mTOR and autophagy are critical for the pathogenesis of PD. In this review, we will summarize recent advances regarding the roles of mTOR and autophagy in PD pathogenesis and treatment. Further characterizing the dysregulation of mTOR pathway and the clinical translation of mTOR modulators in PD may offer exciting new avenues for future drug development.

A selective and sensitive UFLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous determination of five alkaloids fromPiper longumL. and its application in the pharmacokinetic study of 6-OHDA-induced Parkinson's disease rats

Five alkaloids fromPiper longumL. were simultaneously determined by UFLC-MS/MS and applied in the pharmacokinetic study in PD rats.

Astragalus Polysaccharide Protects Neurons and Stabilizes Mitochondrial in a Mouse Model of Parkinson Disease

BACKGROUND Astragalus polysaccharides (APS) have a very good therapeutic effect in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and nerve injury disease. However, research on Parkinson disease (PD) treatment with APS is lacking. MATERIAL AND METHODS The present study was designed to explore the effects of APS on the protection of neurons and mitochondrial in a mouse model of PD using behavioral experiments, and observations of mitochondrial structure and transmembrane potential. RESULTS It was shown that APS could attenuate 1-methyl-4-pheyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP)-induced motor dysfunction (P<0.01), increase the proportion of TH-positive cells (P<0.01), reverse MPTP-induced mitochondrial structural damage, and reduce MPTP-induced high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and increase MPTP-induced decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential. In addition, APS also decreased the bax/bcl2 ratio, and cytochrome-c and caspase-3 protein content (P<0.01) in substantia nigra in our mouse PD model. CONCLUSIONS APS provided a protective effect on neurons and mitochondrial in a mouse PD model.

Leucine Carboxyl Methyltransferase Downregulation and Protein Phosphatase Methylesterase Upregulation Contribute Toward the Inhibition of Protein Phosphatase 2A by α-Synuclein

The pathology of Parkinson's disease (PD) is characterized by intracellular neurofibrillary tangles of phosphorylated α-synuclein (α-syn). Protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) is responsible for α-syn dephosphorylation. Previous work has demonstrated that α-syn can regulate PP2A activity. However, the mechanisms underlying α-syn regulation of PP2A activity are not well understood. In this study, we found that α-syn overexpression induced increased α-syn phosphorylation at serine 129 (Ser129), and PP2A inhibition, in vitro and in vivo. α-syn overexpression resulted in PP2A demethylation. This demethylation was mediated via downregulated leucine carboxyl methyltransferase (LCMT-1) expression, and upregulated protein phosphatase methylesterase (PME-1) expression. Furthermore, LCMT-1 overexpression, or PME-1 inhibition, reversed α-syn-induced increases in α-syn phosphorylation and apoptosis. In addition to post-translational modifications of the catalytic subunit, regulatory subunits are involved in the regulation of PP2A activity. We found that the levels of regulatory subunits which belong to the PPP2R2 subfamily, not the PPP2R5 subfamily, were downregulated in the examined brain regions of transgenic mice. Our work identifies a novel mechanism to explain how α-syn regulates PP2A activity, and provides the optimization of PP2A methylation as a new target for PD treatment.

Ultrasound-Triggered Effects of the Microbubbles Coupled to GDNF Plasmid-Loaded PEGylated Liposomes in a Rat Model of Parkinson's Disease

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate ultrasound-triggered effects of PEGylated liposomes-coupled microbubbles mediated gene transfer of glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) plasmid (PLs-GDNF-MBs) on behavioral deficits and neuron loss in a rat model of Parkinson's disease (PD).

Methods: The unloaded PLs-MBs were characterized for particle size, concentration and zeta potential. PD rat model was established by a unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) lesion. Rotational, climbing pole, and suspension tests were used to evaluate behavioral deficits. The immunohistochemical staining of tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine transporter (DAT) was used to assess the neuron loss. The expression levels of GDNF and nuclear receptor-related factor 1 (Nurr1) were determined by western blot and qRT-PCR analysis.

Results: The particle size of PLs-MBs was gradually increased, while the concentration and absolute zeta potential were gradually decreased in a time-dependent manner after injection. 6-OHDA elevated amphetamine-induced rotations and decreased the TH and DAT immunoreactivity compared to sham group. However, these effects were blocked by the PLs-GDNF-MBs. In addition, the mRNA and protein expression levels of GDNF and Nurr1 were increased after PLs-GDNF-MBs treatment.

Conclusions: The delivery of PLs-GDNF-MBs into the brains using MRI-guided focused ultrasound alleviates the behavioral deficits and neuron loss in the rat model of PD.

Piperlongumine restores the balance of autophagy and apoptosis by increasing BCL2 phosphorylation in rotenone-induced Parkinson disease models

Parkinson disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder after Alzheimer disease and is caused by genetics, environmental factors and aging, with few treatments currently available. Apoptosis and macroautophagy/autophagy play critical roles in PD pathogenesis; as such, modulating their balance is a potential treatment strategy. BCL2 (B cell leukemia/lymphoma 2) is a key molecule regulating this balance. Piperlongumine (PLG) is an alkaloid extracted from Piper longum L. that has antiinflammatory and anticancer effects. The present study investigated the protective effects of PLG in rotenone-induced PD cell and mouse models. We found that PLG administration (2 and 4 mg/kg) for 4 wk attenuated motor deficits in mice and prevented the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra induced by oral administration of rotenone (10 mg/kg) for 6 wk. PLG improved cell viability and enhanced mitochondrial function in primary neurons and SK-N-SH cells. These protective effects were exerted via inhibition of apoptosis and induction of autophagy through enhancement of BCL2 phosphorylation at Ser70. These results demonstrate that PLG exerts therapeutic effects in a rotenone-induced PD models by restoring the balance between apoptosis and autophagy.

ABBREVIATIONS

6-OHDA, 6-hydroxydopamine; ACTB, actin, beta; BafA1, bafilomycin A1; BAK1, BCL2-antagonist/killer 1; BAX, BCL2-associated X protein; BCL2, B cell leukemia/lymphoma2; BECN1, Beclin 1, autophagy related; CoQ10, coenzyme Q10; COX4I1/COX IV, cytochrome c oxidase subunit 4I1; CsA, cyclosporine A; ED50, 50% effective dose; FITC, fluorescein isothiocyanate; GFP, green fluorescent protein; HPLC, high-performance liquid chromatography; JC-1, tetraethylbenz-imidazolylcarbocyanine iodide; LC3, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain3; LC-MS/MS, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry; LDH, lactate dehydrogenase; l-dopa, 3, 4-dihydroxyphenyl-l-alanine; MAPK8/JNK1, mitogen-activated protein kinase 8; MMP, mitochondrial membrane potential; mPTP, mitochondrial permeability transition pore; mRFP, monomeric red fluorescent protein; MPTP, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine; MTT, 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide; NFE2L2/NRF2, nuclear factor, erythroid derived 2, like 2; PD, Parkinson disease; PLG, piperlongumine; pNA, p-nitroanilide; PI, propidium iodide; PtdIns3K, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase; PtdIns3P, phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate; PTX, paclitaxel; Rap, rapamycin; SQSTM1/p62, sequestosome 1; TH, tyrosine hydroxylase; TUNEL, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling; WIPI2, WD repeat domain, phosphoinositide interacting 2; ZFYVE1/DFCP1, zinc finger, FYVE domain containing 1.

Targeting Cellular Stress Mechanisms and Metabolic Homeostasis by Chinese Herbal Drugs for Neuroprotection

Traditional Chinese medicine has been practiced for centuries in East Asia. Herbs are used to maintain health and cure disease. Certain Chinese herbs are known to protect and improve the brain, memory, and nervous system. To apply ancient knowledge to modern science, some major natural therapeutic compounds in herbs were extracted and evaluated in recent decades. Emerging studies have shown that herbal compounds have neuroprotective effects or can ameliorate neurodegenerative diseases. To understand the mechanisms of herbal compounds that protect against neurodegenerative diseases, we summarize studies that discovered neuroprotection by herbal compounds and compound-related mechanisms in neurodegenerative disease models. Those compounds discussed herein show neuroprotection through different mechanisms, such as cytokine regulation, autophagy, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress, glucose metabolism, and synaptic function. The interleukin (IL)-1β and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α signaling pathways are inhibited by some compounds, thus attenuating the inflammatory response and protecting neurons from cell death. As to autophagy regulation, herbal compounds show opposite regulatory effects in different neurodegenerative models. Herbal compounds that inhibit ER stress prevent neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases. Moreover, there are compounds that protect against neuronal death by affecting glucose metabolism and synaptic function. Since the progression of neurodegenerative diseases is complicated, and compound-related mechanisms for neuroprotection differ, therapeutic strategies may need to involve multiple compounds and consider the type and stage of neurodegenerative diseases.

PINK1 suppresses alpha-synuclein-induced neuronal injury: a novel mechanism in protein phosphatase 2A activation

Alpha-synuclein (α-Syn) and phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome ten (PTEN)-induced putative kinase (PINK) 1 are proteins found in Lewy bodies, which are a pathological hallmark of Parkinson's disease (PD). PINK1 overexpression suppresses α-Syn-induced phenotypes and increases lifespan and health in an animal model of PD. It has been suggested that the two proteins regulate protein phosphatase (PP) 2A activity, but the underlying mechanisms and neuroprotective action of PP2A against PD-associated pathology are unknown. We found that α-Syn overexpression in SK-N-SH neuroblastoma cells and primary cortical neurons caused mitochondrial dysfunction and cell injury via phosphorylation of PP2A at Tyr307 and inhibition of its activity. Concomitant overexpression of PINK1 reversed this effect and restored the activity. The level of phospho-activated Src was increased in cells overexpressing α-Syn, which was reversed by co-expressing PINK1, suggesting that the latter suppressed α-Syn-induced PP2A inactivation by inhibiting Src activity. Calmodulin/Src complex formation was also enhanced in α-Syn-overexpressing cells, which was reversed by co-expression of PINK1 as a result of reduced mitochondrial Ca²⁺ releasing. Interestingly, the protective effects of PINK1 in α-Syn induced models were abolished by treatment with the PP2A inhibitor okadaic acid, indicating that PP2A is a target of PINK1. These findings indicate that PINK1 protects against α-Syn-induced neurodegeneration by promoting the dissociation of the calmodulin/Src complex and inhibiting Src, thereby enhancing PP2A activity. This was supported by the observation that PP2A activity was decreased in PD patients, which was negatively correlated with Hoehn and Yahr scores. Our results provide novel insight into the mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration in PD as well as possible avenues for therapeutic intervention in the treatment of this disease.

Pink1 interacts with α-synuclein and abrogates α-synuclein-induced neurotoxicity by activating autophagy

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases, characterized by degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra. α-synuclein (α-syn) and PTEN-induced putative kinase (PINK)1 are two critical proteins associated with the pathogenesis of PD. α-syn induces mitochondrial deficits and apoptosis, PINK1 was found to alleviate α-syn-induced toxicity, but the mechanistic details remain obscure. Here, we show that PINK1 interacts with α-syn mainly in the cytoplasm, where it initiates autophagy. This interaction was dependent on the kinase activity of PINK1 and was abolished by deletion of the kinase domain or a G309D point mutation, an inactivating mutation in the kinase domain. Interaction between PINK1 and α-syn stimulated the removal of excess α-syn, which prevented mitochondrial deficits and apoptosis. Our findings provide evidence for a novel mechanism underlying the protective effects of PINK1 against α-syn-induced neurodegeneration and highlight a novel therapeutic target for PD treatment.