title: The neuritogenic and synaptogenic effects of the ethanolic extract of radix Puerariae in cultured rat hippocampal neurons.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Radix Puerariae, the root of Pueraria montana var. lobata (Willd.) Sanjappa & Pradeep, is used in Korean traditional medicine to treat neuronal disorders including Parkinson's disease, and its active constituent, puerarin has been reported to have a neuroprotective effect in experimental models of Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the neurotrophic effects of these ethnomedicines on the development of central nervous system neurons and the molecular bases of these activities.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rat embryonic (E19) brain neurons were cultured in the absence or presence of the ethanolic extract of Radix Puerariae (RPE) or puerarin. At predetermined times, cells were fixed and immunostained to visualize neuronal morphologies, or lysed for protein harvesting. Morphometric analyses of neurite outgrowths and synaptogenesis were performed using Image J software. RPE or puerarin-mediated changes in the protein profiles of cultured neurons were assessed by MALDI-TOF-MS/PMF and measuring immunofluorescent intensities.
  
  
  RESULTS
  RPE and puerarin alone promoted maximum neurite outgrowths at concentrations of 1µg/ml and 5µM, respectively. At these optimal concentrations, RPE and puerarin provided neurotrophic support by promoting axo-dendritic arbors and synapse formation in cultured neurons. Proteomic study revealed that RPE and puerarin both up-regulated a number of proteins, including dynein light chain 2 (DLC2) and elongation factor 2 (EF2), which are associated with neuritogenesis and synaptic potentiation, respectively. Immunofluorescence intensity measurements confirmed the expressions of the DLC2 and Dync1h1 subunits of dynein in RPE or puerarin treated hippocampal neurons were up-regulated when RPE or puerarin induced changes in neuronal cytoarchitecture.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study demonstrates that RPE and puerarin should be considered potentially valuable preventative therapeutics for brain disorders due to their abilities to promote the neuronal cytoarchitecture and the synaptic functionality, which are possibly associated with dynein-dependent regulation of cytoskeletal structures and up-regulation of translation machinery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 780-714, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Mohammad Maqueshudul
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Haque Bhuiyan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Pukyong National University, Namku, Busan 608-737, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Md
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mohibbullah
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh 2202, Bangladesh.
authors.forename: Md Abdul
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hannan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Pukyong National University, Namku, Busan 608-737, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Yong-Ki
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, College of Korean Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 780-714, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Chang-Ho
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 780-714, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Yung Kyu
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine, Dongguk University, Gyeongju 780-714, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: moonis@dongguk.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Il Soo
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Moon
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000166:cytology; D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D000431:Ethanol / Q000737:chemistry; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology*; D007529:Isoflavones / Q000494:pharmacology; D055670:Medicine, Korean Traditional; D016501:Neurites / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D009474:Neurons / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D029908:Pueraria; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012997:Solvents / Q000737:chemistry; D013569:Synapses / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D004365:Drugs, Chinese Herbal; D007529:Isoflavones; D012997:Solvents; C442842:plant extract, Puerariae Radix; D000431:Ethanol; C033607:puerarin
keywords: Dynein; Elongation factor 2; Hippocampal neuron; Neuritogenesis; Radix Puerariae; Synaptogenesis