Curcuminoids in neurodegenerative diseases.

Curcuminoids in neurodegenerative diseases. Recent Pat CNS Drug Discov. 2012 Dec;7(3):184-204 Authors: Kim DS, Kim JY, Han Y Abstract Neurodegeneration is a term used to describe progressive deterioration of structure and/or function of neurons that affects different parts of the central nervous system and leads to eventual death. Neurodegenerative diseases include Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease (HD), and Down's syndrome (DS), multiple sclerosis (MS), glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration (AMD), and diabetic encephalopathy (DE). Although the initial events that trigger these disorders may be different from each other, they share similar biochemical reactions that lead to neurodegeneration. Curcuminoids, polyphenol compounds from turmeric (Curcuma longa), possess diverse biological properties that modulate debilitating biochemical processes involved in AD that include attenuation of mitochondrial dysfunction-induced oxidative stress and inflammatory responses to inflammatory cytokines, COX-2, and iNOS. Curcuminoids also bind to β-amyloid (Aβ) plaques to inhibit amyloid accumulation and aggregation in the brain, in addition to inhibiting the toxic Aβ oligomer formation and oligomer-dependent Aβ toxicity. These properties can be further elaborated to DS, glaucoma and AMD. Curcuminoids also prevent α-synuclein aggregation in PD; attenuate ROS-induced...
Source: Recent Patents on CNS Drug Discovery - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Recent Pat CNS Drug Discov Source Type: research