[Development of anti-Alzheimer's disease drug based on beta-amyloid hypothesis]

Yakugaku Zasshi. 2010 Apr;130(4):521-6. doi: 10.1248/yakushi.130.521.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Currently, there are five anti-Alzheimer's disease drugs approved. These are tacrine, donepezil, rivastigmine, galantamine, and memantine. The mechanism of the first four drugs is acetylcholinesterase inhibition, while memantine is an NMDA-receptor antagonist. However, these drugs do not cure Alzheimer's, but are only symptomatic treatments. Therefore, a cure for Alzheimer's disease is truly needed. Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by cognitive deficits. The cause of the disease is not well understood, but research indicates that the aggregation of beta-amyloid is the fundamental cause. This theory suggests that beta-amyloid aggregation causes neurotoxicity. Therefore, development of the next anti-Alzheimer's disease drug is based on the beta-amyloid theory. We are now studying natural products, such as mulberry leaf extracts and curcumin derivatives, as potential cure for Alzheimer's disease. In this report, we describe some data about these natural products and derivatives.

Publication types

  • English Abstract
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Agglutination
  • Alzheimer Disease / drug therapy*
  • Alzheimer Disease / etiology*
  • Alzheimer Disease / metabolism
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides / metabolism*
  • Amyloid beta-Peptides / toxicity
  • Cholinesterase Inhibitors
  • Curcumin / analogs & derivatives*
  • Drug Discovery*
  • Humans
  • Morus / chemistry*
  • Phytotherapy
  • Plant Extracts / therapeutic use*
  • Plant Leaves / chemistry*

Substances

  • Amyloid beta-Peptides
  • Cholinesterase Inhibitors
  • Plant Extracts
  • Curcumin