PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF IRIS GERMANICA L. IN Β-AMYLOID-INDUCED ANIMAL MODEL OF ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia that is an irretrievable chronic neurodegenerative disease. In the current study, we have examined the therapeutic effects of Iris germanica extract on Amyloid β (Aβ) induced memory impairment. Materials and Methods: Wistar rats were divided into five groups of 8 per each. Groups were as followed: control group which were normal rats without induction of AD, Aβ group which received Aβ (50 ng/side), iris 100 group which received Aβ + Iris (100 mg/kg), iris 200 group which received Aβ + Iris (200 mg/kg), and iris 400 group which received Aβ + Iris (400 mg/kg). AD was established by intrahippocampal injection of 50 ng/μl/side Aβ1-42. The day after surgery, animals in treatment groups received different doses of the aqueous extract of Iris by gavage for 30 days. Morris water maze test (MWM) was performed to assess the effects of I. germanica on learning and memory of rats with Aβ induced AD. Results: Data from MWM tests, including escape latency and traveled distance, demonstrated that I. germanica extract could markedly improve spatial memory in comparison to control. Moreover, the plant had a significantly better effect on the performance of AD rats in the probe test. Conclusion: I. germanica extract can successfully reverse spatial learning dysfunction in an experimental model of AD. Further neuro psyco-pharmacological studies are mandatory to reveal the mechanism of action of this natural remedy in the management of AD symptoms

Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium Ameliorate Memory and Learning Deficits and oxidative stress in Aβ (1-42) Injected Rats

Gastrointestinal microbiota and its organisms are related to the brain and affect brain functioning including memory and learning. In this study we hence investigated the effects of probiotics on memory and oxidative stress biomarkers in an experimental model of Alzheimer’s disease. Sixty rats were randomly divided into 5 groups: Controls (C), control-probiotics (CP) that received probiotics for 8 weeks, sham operation (S) that had intra hippocampal PBS injection, Alzheimer (Aβ) that had the Aβ 1-42 intra-hippocampal injection and the Alzheimer-probiotics (AP) group, which in addition to being injected Aβ 1-42, received 2g (1010CFU) probiotics (L.acidophilus, L.fermentum, B.lactis, B.longum) for 8 weeks. Memory and learning were measured using the Morris water maze and oxidative stress biomarkers in the hippocampus, using ELISA kits. Morris water maze results indicated that using probiotics, in the Alzheimer-probiotics group, significantly improved spatial memory including scape latency, traveled distance and time spent in target quadrant. There was also improvement in oxidative stress biomarkers such as increased malondialdehyde levels and superoxide dismutase activity following the β-amyloid injection. Overall, it seems that probiotics play an effective role in improving memory deficit and the pathological mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease by modifying microbiota.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author