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Curcumin Ameliorates Memory Decline via Inhibiting BACE1 Expression and β-Amyloid Pathology in 5×FAD Transgenic Mice

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Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common dementia and the trigger of its pathological cascade is widely believed to be the overproduction and accumulation of β-amyloid protein (Aβ) in the affected brain. However, effective AD remedies are still anxiously awaited. Recent evidence suggests that curcumin may be a potential agent for AD treatment. In this study, we used 5×FAD transgenic mice as an AD model to investigate the effects of curcumin on AD. Our results showed that curcumin administration (150 or 300 mg/kg/day, intragastrically, for 60 days) dramatically reduced Aβ production by downregulating BACE1 expression, preventing synaptic degradation, and improving spatial learning and memory impairment of 5×FAD mice. These findings suggest that curcumin is a potential candidate for AD treatment.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Prof. Mary Jo LaDu (Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA) for kindly providing the 5×FAD mice. These studies were funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China to Prof. Xiao-chun Chen (No. 91232709, 811171216, 81110555) and Prof. Jing Zhang (No. 81401149) and the National and Fujian Province’s Key Clinical Specialty Discipline Construction Programs.

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    1. Department of Neurology and Geriatrics, Fujian Institute of Geriatrics, Affiliated Union Hospital of Fujian Medical University, 29 Xinquan Road, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350001, People’s Republic of China

      Kunmu Zheng, Xiaoman Dai, Yuangui Zhu, Jing Zhang & Xiaochun Chen

    2. Key Laboratory of Brain Aging and Neurodegenerative Diseases, Fujian Key Laboratory of Molecular Neurology, Fujian Medical University, 29 Xinquan Road, Fuzhou, 350001, China

      Kunmu Zheng, Xiaoman Dai, Nai’an Xiao, Xilin Wu, Zhen Wei, Wenting Fang, Yuangui Zhu, Jing Zhang & Xiaochun Chen

    3. Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361000, China

      Kunmu Zheng & Nai’an Xiao

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    Kunmu Zheng and Xiaoman Dai contributed equally to this work.

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    Zheng, K., Dai, X., Xiao, N. et al. Curcumin Ameliorates Memory Decline via Inhibiting BACE1 Expression and β-Amyloid Pathology in 5×FAD Transgenic Mice. Mol Neurobiol 54, 1967–1977 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12035-016-9802-9

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