title: Berberine rescues D-galactose-induced synaptic/memory impairment by regulating the levels of Arc.
abstract: Synaptic communication forms the basis of learning and memory. Disruptions of synaptic function and memory have been widely reported in many neurological diseases, such as dementia. Thus, restoration of impaired synaptic communication is a potential therapeutic approach for these diseases. In this study, we demonstrated that supplementation with berberine, a plant alkaloid with a long history of medicinal usage in Chinese medicine, effectively reverses the synaptic deficits induced by D-galactose. We also found that berberine rescued D-galactose-induced memory impairment and additionally rescued the mRNA and protein levels of Arc/Arg3.1, an important immediate early gene that is crucial for maintaining normal synaptic plasticity. Our study provides the first piece of evidence supporting the potential use of berberine in the treatment of neural diseases with synaptic/memory impairments.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Central Hospital of Wuhan, Wuhan 430014, China. Electronic address: zhanpy2012@163.com.
authors.forename: Pei-Yan
authors.initials: PY
authors.lastname: Zhan
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Central Hospital of Wuhan, Wuhan 430014, China.
authors.forename: Cai-Xia
authors.initials: CX
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Central Hospital of Wuhan, Wuhan 430014, China. Electronic address: zhanglh20131@163.com.
authors.forename: Lin-Hong
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001599:Berberine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D017931:DNA Primers; D005690:Galactose / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013569:Synapses / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D003598:Cytoskeletal Proteins; D017931:DNA Primers; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C092069:activity regulated cytoskeletal-associated protein; D001599:Berberine; D005690:Galactose
keywords: Arc protein; Berberine; Synapse