Therapeutic Effects of Prunus dulcis Extract on Neurogenesis and Regulation of Disease Associated Biomarkers in Alzheimer’s Disease Mouse Model

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a devastating and advancing condition that predominantly impacts the older people. AD is distinguished by the buildup of anomalous protein deposits in the brain, which leads to the loss of cognitive function gradually. Till date, there is no existing treatment for AD capable of effectively halting its advancement. For decades, plants, herbs and their extracts have been employed in AD treatment. "Prunus dulcis," commonly known as Almond, is of considerable scientific interest due to its noteworthy culinary and nutritional attributes. In this research, the impact of orally administered Prunus dulcis on AD mouse models induced by AlCl3 was examined, and the outcomes were compared with those of Donepezil, a standard drug for AD treatment. The mice were categorized into six separate study groups, each comprising eight animals. To evaluate the influence of AlCl3 (300mg/kg) and P. dulcis (250mg/kg) treatments on anxiety and memory, a series of behavioral assessments including the Elevated Plus Maze (EPM) test, Y-maze test, Novel Object Recognition (NOR) test and Morris Water Maze (MWM) test were conducted. The findings revealed that the administration of P. dulcis significantly decrease (p<0.01) anxiety levels following exposure to AlCl3. Furthermore, the group receiving AlCl3 + P. dulcis extract demonstrated a substantial enhancement (p<0.01) in spatial memory in comparison to the AlCl3-treated group. Additionally, recognition memory was also significantly improved (p<0.0001) in the AlCl3 + P. dulcis extract-treated group. The AlCl3 + P. dulcis extract-treated group also showed substantial improvement (p<0.0001) in both learning and spatial memory in comparison to AlCl3-treated group. Histopathological evaluation, conducted using Congo red staining, revealed a remarkable reduction in amyloid beta (Aβ) plaque accumulation within the hippocampus of mice treated with P. dulcis extract following exposure to AlCl3.