TY - JOUR JO - Archives of Medical Science SN - 1734-1922 VL - 9 IS - 1 PY - 2013 ID - Panahi2013 TI - Experimental researchEffects of berberine on β-secretase activity in a rabbit model of Alzheimer’s disease AB - Introduction : Relevant aspects of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) can be modeled by aluminium-maltolate injection into specific regions of the brain. The possible role of berberine chloride (BC) as an anti-inflammatory agent in the brain has been previously addressed. Material and methods: Rabbits were divided into control (C), untreated lesion (L) and BC-treated + lesion (L + BC) groups. Animals in L + BC received BC (50 mg/ kg) orally 1 day after surgery and daily for 2 weeks. The lesion was induced by injection of 100 μl of either vehicle or water containing 25 mM aluminium-maltol into intraventricular fissure. Weight loss, ataxia, paralysis and tremor were monitored. For histopathology, Bielschowsky silver and H&E staining were employed. β-Secretase activity in hippocampus was finally assessed. Results : All L animals died on days 12-15 after lesion. Seven to 10 days after lesion, abnormal symptoms as well as cachexia were seen in over 90% of cases. L rabbits lost an average of 0.5 kg which was significant on days 10 and 12 (p < 0.05); this was not completely prevented by BC. Up to day 15, all L animals had lost their lives (p < 0.001). BC treatment protected the hippocampus from degeneration, altered the behavior and decreased the activity of β-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme-1 (BACE-1). Conclusions : Considering the findings in regard to physiological abilities, histological changes and BACE-1 activity in hippocampus changes, it is concluded that BC treatment could be an effective therapy in restoring Al maltol-induced behavioral derangements in the rabbit model of AD. AU - Panahi, Negar AU - Mahmoudian, Massoud AU - Mortazavi, Pejman AU - Hashjin, Goudarz Sadeghi SP - 146 EP - 150 DA - 2013 DO - 10.5114/aoms.2013.33354 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.5114/aoms.2013.33354 ER -