Memory Enhancing and Neurogenesis Activity of Honey Bee Venom in the Symptoms of Amnesia: Using Rats with Amnesia-like Alzheimer's Disease as a Model

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is mainly characterized by amnesia that affects millions of people worldwide. This study aims to explore the effectiveness capacities of bee venom (BV) for the enhancement of the memory process in a rat model with amnesia-like AD.

METHODS

The study protocol contains two successive phases, nootropic and therapeutic, in which two BV doses (D1; 0.25 and D2: 0.5 mg/kg i.p.) were used. In the nootropic phase, treatment groups were compared statistically with a normal group. Meanwhile, in the therapeutic phase, BV was administered to scopolamine (1mg/kg) to induce amnesia-like AD in a rat model in which therapeutic groups were compared with a positive group (donepezil; 1mg/kg i.p.). Behavioral analysis was performed after each phase by Working Memory (WM) and Long-Term Memory (LTM) assessments using radial arm maze (RAM) and passive avoidance tests (PAT). Neurogenic factors; Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and Doublecortin (DCX) were measured in plasma using ELISA and Immunohistochemistry analysis of hippocampal tissues, respectively.

RESULTS

During the nootropic phase, treatment groups demonstrated a significant (P < 0.05) reduction in RAM latency times, spatial WM errors, and spatial reference errors compared with the normal group. In addition, the PA test revealed a significant (P < 0.05) enhancement of LTM after 72 hours in both treatment groups; D1 and D2. In the therapeutic phase, treatment groups reflected a significant (P < 0.05) potent enhancement in the memory process compared with the positive group; less spatial WM errors, spatial reference errors, and latency time during the RAM test, and more latency time after 72 hours in the light room. Moreover, results presented a marked increase in the plasma level of BDNF, as well as increased hippocampal DCX-positive data in the sub-granular zone within the D1 and D2 groups compared with the negative group (P < 0.05) in a dose-dependent manner.

CONCLUSION

This study revealed that injecting BV enhances and increases the performance of both WM and LTM. Conclusively, BV has a potential nootropic and therapeutic activity that enhances hippocampal growth and plasticity, which in turn improves WM and LTM. Given that this research was conducted using scopolamine-induced amnesia-like AD in rats, it suggests that BV has a potential therapeutic activity for the enhancement of memory in AD patients in a dose-dependent manner but further investigations are needed.

Antibacterial and cytotoxicity evaluation of Arum hygrophilum Bioss

OBJECTIVE

Arum hygrophilum Bioss is a plant native to Asia, Europe, and Northern Africa. It is consumed as beverages, spices, or cooked leaves to cure gastrointestinal infections and cancer. This study aims to determine the antibacterial and anticancer effectivenesss of A. hygrophilum Bioss.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Using the well-diffusion method, the antimicrobial activity of the plant's aqueous extract and five other organic extracts were evaluated against bacteria often associated with food poisoning. The assessment of the antiproliferative activity by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was done on five cancerous cell lines and on fibroblasts as a reference cell line.

RESULTS

The growth of L. monocytogenes was significantly inhibited by the aqueous and ethanolic extracts. Both extracts had a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 62.5 mg/mL. The inhibition caused by the methanolic extract had a MIC of 500 mg/mL. The growth of S. aureus and MRSA were inhibited by the aqueous extract with a MIC of 500 mg/mL, while the inhibition caused by the ethanolic extract had a MIC of 250 mg/mL on MRSA and 500 mg/mL on S.aureus. Both strains of S.aureus were also inhibited by the 3-pentanon extract, while the butanol extract only exhibited a moderate growth inhibition against MRSA. The MTT assay showed that the aqueous extract had not affected the proliferation of cancer cell lines. The cytotoxicity of the ethanolic and methanolic extracts had no concentration-inhibition relationship and the IC50 values were above 800 μg/mL for all extracts.

CONCLUSIONS

L. monocytogenes, S. aureus, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) were inhibited by different Arum extracts. The antibacterial activity of Arum hygrophilum Bioss against foodborne pathogens makes it safe to use as a natural food preservative, and as a source for sanitizers and antimicrobials. Further investigation is recommended to determine the cytotoxicity of the plant against additional cancer cell lines.

Immunodiagnosis of cattle fascioliasis using a 27 kDa Fasciola gigantica antigen

Background and Aim:

Diagnosis of fascioliasis depends on clinical symptoms and routine laboratory tests. Recently, antibodies and circulating antigens of Fasciola were used for detecting active infections. Therefore, this study aimed to identify Fasciola gigantica antigens in the sera of infected cattle using Western blotting and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for an accurate diagnosis of cattle infected with F. gigantica.

Materials and Methods:

Serum samples were obtained from 108, 23, and 19 cattle infected with Fasciola gigantica, Paramphistomum cervi, and Strongylids, respectively, including 57 non-infected cattle that were used as healthy cattle for the study. Western blotting and ELISA were then used to detect circulating Fasciola antigens at 27 kDa.

Results:

The target epitope was detected in an F. gigantica adult-worm antigen preparation, excretory/secretory products, and serum from cattle infected with F. gigantica. However, it was absent in sera from P. cervi, Strongylids, and healthy cattle. The purified 27 kDa F. gigantica (FPA-27) antigen was also detected in cattle serum using ELISA with high degrees of sensitivity and specificity (94% and 82%, respectively), and the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.89 with a highly significant correlation of p<0.0001.

Conclusion:

The FPA-27 is proposed to be a promising candidate for the serodiagnosis of fascioliasis in cattle.

Punicalagin and zinc (II) ions inhibit the activity of SARS-CoV-2 3CL-protease in vitro

OBJECTIVE

Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) has now been declared as a worldwide pandemic. Currently, no drugs have been endorsed for its treatment; in this manner, a pressing need has been developed for any antiviral drugs that will treat COVID-19. Coronaviruses require the SARS-CoV-2 3CL-Protease (3CL-protease) for cleavage of its polyprotein to yield a single useful protein and assume a basic role in the disease progression. In this study, we demonstrated that punicalagin, the fundamental active element of pomegranate in addition to the combination of punicalagin with zinc (Zn) II, appear to show powerful inhibitory activity against SARS-CoV-2.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The 3CL protease assay kit was used to quantify 3CL protease action. The tetrazolium dye, MTS, was used to evaluate cytotoxicity.

RESULTS

Punicalagin showed inhibitory action against the 3CL-protease in a dose-dependent manner, and IC50 was found to be 6.192 μg/ml for punicalagin. Punicalagin (10 µg/mL) demonstrated a significant inhibitory activity toward 3CL-protease activity (p < 0.001), yet when punicalagin is combined with zinc sulfate monohydrate (punicalagin/Zn-II) extremely strong 3CL-protease activity (p < 0.001) was obtained. The action of 3CL-protease with punicalagin/Zn-II was decreased by approximately 4.4-fold in contrast to only punicalagin (10 µg/mL). Likewise, we did not notice any significant cytotoxicity caused by punicalagin, Zn-II, or punicalagin/Zn-II.

CONCLUSIONS

We suggest that these compounds could be used as potential antiviral drugs against COVID-19.