Shexiang Baoxin Pill, a Traditional Chinese Herbal Formula, Rescues the Cognitive Impairments in APP/PS1 Transgenic Mice

Wei-Hui Hu; Shing-Hung Mak; Zhong-Yu Zheng; Ying-Jie Xia; Miranda Li Xu; Ran Duan; Tina Ting-Xia Dong; Shao-Ping Li; Chang-Sen Zhan; Xiao-Hui Shang; Karl Wah-Keung Tsim

doi:10.3389/fphar.2020.01045

Shexiang Baoxin Pill, a Traditional Chinese Herbal Formula, Rescues the Cognitive Impairments in APP/PS1 Transgenic Mice

Front Pharmacol. 2020 Jul 14:11:1045. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2020.01045. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Wei-Hui Hu^{1

2

3}, Shing-Hung Mak^{1

2}, Zhong-Yu Zheng^{1

2}, Ying-Jie Xia^{1

2}, Miranda Li Xu^{1

2}, Ran Duan^{1

2

3}, Tina Ting-Xia Dong^{1

2

3}, Shao-Ping Li⁴, Chang-Sen Zhan^{5

6}, Xiao-Hui Shang^{5

6}, Karl Wah-Keung Tsim^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Edible and Medicinal Bioresources, HKUST Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, China.
² Division of Life Science and Center for Chinese Medicine and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Neuroscience, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
³ Joint Laboratory of Guangdong Province and Hong Kong Region on Marine Bioresource Conservation and Exploitation, College of Marine Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China.
⁴ Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, Macau.
⁵ Shanghai Engineering Research Center for Innovation of Solid Preparation of TCM, Shanghai, China.
⁶ Shanghai Hutchison Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Shanghai, China.

Abstract

Background: Shexiang Baoxin Pill (SBP), a formulated traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), has been widely used to treat cardiovascular diseases for years. This herbal mixture has been shown to promote differentiation of cultured neuronal cells. Here, we aimed to investigate the effects of SBP in attenuating cognitive impairment in APP/PS1 transgenic mice.

Methods: Ethanol and water extracts of SBP, denoted as SBP_EtOH and SBP_water, were standardized and applied onto cultured rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells. The potential effect of SBP_EtOH extract in attenuating the cognitive impairments in APP/PS1 transgenic mice was shown by following lines of evidence: (i) inhibition of Aβ fibril formation, (ii) suppression of secretions of cytokines, and (iii) improvement of behavioral tests by Morris water maze.

Results: SBP_water and SBP_EtOH inhibited the formation of β-amyloid fibrils and protected the Aβ-induced cytotoxicity in cultured PC12 cells. In APP/PS1 transgenic mice, the treatment of SBP_EtOH inhibited expressions of NO, NOS, AChE, as well as aggregation of Aβ. Besides, the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines were suppressed by SBP treatment in the transgenic mice. Importantly, the behavioral tests by Morris Water maze indicated that SBP attenuated cognitive impairments in APP/PS1 transgenic mice.

Conclusion: The current result has supported the notion that SPB might ameliorate the cognitive impairment through multiple targets, suggesting that SBP could be considered as a promising anti-AD agent.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; Chinese medicine; Shexiang Baoxin Pill; acetylcholinesterase; cognitive enhancing effect; neuroprotective.