title: Puerarin ameliorates cognitive deficits in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.
abstract: Previous research has indicated that Diabetes is a high risk of learning and memory deficits. Puerarin, an isoflavonoid extracted from Kudzu roots, has been reported to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic and anti-diabetic properties which are useful in the treatment of various diseases. Recently, Puerarin was found to have the effects on learning and memory performances in humans and animal models. However, up to now, there is no detailed evidence on the effect of Puerarin on diabetes-associated cognitive decline (DACD). In this study, we designed to assess the effects of Puerarin on diabetes-associated cognitive decline (DACD) using a streptozotocin (STZ)-injected rat model and exploring its potential mechanism. Diabetic rats were treated with Puerarin (100 mg/kg per d) for 7 days. The learning and memory function was evaluated by morris water maze test. The acetylcholinesterase (AChE), choline acetylase (ChAT), oxidative indicators [malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD)] and inflammatory cytokine (TNF-a, IL-1β and IL-6) were measured in hippocampus by using corresponding commercial kits. mRNA and Protein levels of Bcl-2 were analyzed by RT-PCR and Westernblot. The results showed that supplementation of Puerarin improved the learning and memory performances compared with the STZ group by the morris water maze test. In addition, Puerarin supplement significantly prevented AChE and MDA activities, increased ChAT and SOD activities, and alleviated the protein level of TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 in the hippocampus compared with the STZ group. Moreover, the pretreatment with Puerarin also significantly increased the Bcl-2 expression. It is concluded that Puerarin possesses neuroprotection to ameliorate cognitive deficits in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats by anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antiapototic effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xianchu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yanzhi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mo
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jingbo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhuang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Huan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jiaxue
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Qichao
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Zhaowen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ke
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Psychology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Hunan, People's Republic of China. xiejingtao516@163.com.
authors.forename: Jingtao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xie
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects*; D007529:Isoflavones / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000187:drug effects; D008568:Memory / Q000187:drug effects*; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013311:Streptozocin; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D007529:Isoflavones; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D013311:Streptozocin; C033607:puerarin
keywords: Bcl-2; Cognitive; DACD; Inflammation; Oxidative stress; Puerarin